A US federal judge on Thursday said he would grant final approval to a $72.5m settlement between Bank of America and women who accused the bank of facilitating their sexual abuse by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.

US District Judge Jed Rakoff said at a hearing in Manhattan that the settlement would provide many victims with “substantial” compensation and “justice, even if partial”. He rejected objections from three accusers who argued that the deal was too broad because it required them to give up related claims against the bank and other potential defendants without compensation.

The lead plaintiff, identified by the pseudonym Jane Doe, alleges that Epstein sexually abused her at least 100 times between 2011 and 2019. She said he repeatedly paid her to further his sex trafficking, with his money wired in and out of her Bank of America accounts.

Bank of America said when it agreed to the settlement in March that it had not facilitated sex trafficking. In 2023, Jane Doe’s lawyers secured settlements on behalf of Epstein’s accusers of $290m with JPMorgan Chase and $75m with Deutsche Bank.

(Reuters, Lud)