Former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley has agreed to appear before a US congressional committee in July as lawmakers expand their investigation into the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case and the disgraced financier’s network of associates.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is scheduled to interview Staley on 23 July, according to the Financial Times, after he accepted an invitation from committee chair James Comer earlier this month. Comer told Staley that lawmakers believed he could provide information relevant to the committee’s inquiry into the US government’s handling of the Epstein case.

Staley, who led Barclays from 2015 until his resignation in 2021, is among a series of high-profile figures being questioned by the Republican-controlled committee. According to CNBC, former President Bill Clinton, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, former attorney-general Pam Bondi and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates have either appeared or are due to appear before the panel.

The former banker’s relationship with Epstein has been under scrutiny for years. Before joining Barclays, Staley ran JPMorgan Chase’s private wealth and asset management businesses, where Epstein was a significant client. Staley later described Epstein as a friend and acknowledged that the two men had been “very close”.

The congressional appearance follows a string of legal and regulatory setbacks for Staley. Reuters reported that he lost an appeal in June 2025 against a Financial Conduct Authority decision to ban him from holding senior roles in UK financial services and fine him £1.1 million. Judge Timothy Herrington said there was “overwhelming” evidence that Staley and Epstein had a close relationship.

Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said Staley “chose to take a calculated risk that we would take his inaccurate account of his relationship with Mr Epstein at face value”.

According to documents reported by the Financial Times, newly released US Department of Justice files revealed that Epstein had named Staley as an executor in multiple versions of his will between 2012 and 2014. During legal proceedings in London, Staley said he had declined a request to act as a trustee of Epstein’s estate.

Further scrutiny emerged in February when The Guardian reported that unsealed US investigative files contained allegations of sexual misconduct involving Staley. The newspaper said prosecutors reviewed allegations made by women interviewed during the Epstein investigation. Staley has denied wrongdoing, has never been charged with any offence linked to those allegations, and did not respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.

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