From offshore wealth to private islands: How the Epstein Files complete a decade of elite exposure

For more than a decade, global leaks have peeled back the carefully curated public faces of the powerful. 

The Panama Papers exposed how wealth quietly slipped through offshore cracks. The Paradise Papers followed, mapping a world where legality and morality rarely shared the same address.

But the latest release of the Epstein files marks a darker turn in this long reckoning. This time, the documents do not merely trace money. They trace proximity to parties, to islands, to women described not as people but as assets. And in doing so, they reveal an intimate underbelly of power that had largely escaped public scrutiny.

Graphics: TBS

Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in a New York jail cell in 2019, was long portrayed as a social connector, a man who moved easily between Wall Street, royalty, Silicon Valley and Hollywood.

The newly released Department of Justice (DoJ) documents suggest that this access was not incidental. It was the currency. Emails, photographs and travel records reveal not a single conspiracy, but a permissive culture in which influence insulated behaviour, and where social closeness blurred ethical boundaries.

The files were released more than 40 days after a legal deadline set by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed by Congress and signed into law in November. They add to earlier tranches that had already named figures such as Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Woody Allen, and Mick Jagger, none of whom are accused of crimes in these documents.

Yet the accumulation of names has shifted the conversation. This is no longer just about Epstein's crimes. It is about the ecosystems that allowed him to thrive.

Among the most striking overlaps between the Epstein files and earlier financial leaks is the presence of royalty and political elites who have appeared repeatedly across scandals, albeit in different contexts.

The Epstein Files do not overturn the lessons of the past decade. They complete them. Money, secrecy and desire, it turns out, were never separate stories. They were always chapters of the same book.

Take the case of Prince Andrew, for instance: While the Paradise Papers revealed offshore investments linked to the British monarchy through the Duchy of Lancaster, the Epstein files place Andrew in a far more personal scandal. 

The latest documents include photographs of him crouched over an unidentified woman, fully clothed, with no context provided. Andrew has denied all wrongdoing, but the damage is lasting: he has been stripped of royal titles and public duties.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has since said that anyone with information relevant to Epstein's activities should cooperate with investigators. "You cannot be victim-centred if you are not prepared to do that," he said. Requests from US congressional investigators for a transcribed interview with Andrew have gone unanswered.

The same duality, financial propriety on paper, moral ambiguity in private, is shown throughout the files. 

In the case of Bill Gates, while the Panama and Paradise papers never accused the billionaire of financial wrongdoing, the Epstein emails introduce a different narrative: unverified allegations of extramarital affairs and medical treatment, drafted by Epstein himself.

Gates' spokesperson has dismissed the claims as "absolutely absurd and completely false", arguing that they reflect Epstein's frustration at being excluded from Gates' inner circle. A 2023 Wall Street Journal report had already detailed Epstein's failed attempt to leverage personal information about Gates for influence.

Elon Musk's presence in the Epstein files underscores how proximity, rather than proof, now shapes reputational risk. Emails from 2012 to 2014 show the pair discussing helicopter rides to Epstein's island and holiday parties in St Barts. In one exchange, Musk asked which night would host "the wildest party".

Schedule notes from December 2014 suggest a planned island visit, though it remains unclear whether it occurred. Musk has said he declined repeated invitations and warned that limited correspondence could be misinterpreted.

If Musk represents the tech elite, Howard Lutnick illustrates the continuity of Wall Street power across decades. Emails show Lutnick and his family visiting Epstein's island in 2012, with travel coordinated by Epstein's assistant. A lunch appears to have taken place, followed by a polite email noting it was "nice seeing you".

Lutnick later told the New York Post that he had cut ties with Epstein as early as 2005 after being disturbed by comments about massages at Epstein's Manhattan townhouse. A Commerce Department spokesperson says Lutnick has never been accused of wrongdoing.

The language in some exchanges is starker. Emails between Epstein and New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch discuss women in overtly transactional terms. One woman is described by her body; another is assessed as "pro or civilian".

Epstein advises Tisch to proceed slowly because of an age difference, while also cautioning that he does not like records of such conversations. Tisch has since said he regrets the association and never visited Epstein's island.

The Paradise Papers consisted of more than 13 million documents, largely focused on offshore finance. They named pop stars such as Shakira, who transferred £30 million in music rights to a Maltese company; athletes like Lewis Hamilton, who lawfully reclaimed £3.3 million in VAT on a private jet through an Isle of Man leasing structure; and institutions linked to the late Queen, whose estate invested offshore on professional advice. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists stressed that no wrongdoing was implied.

Among the most striking overlaps between the Epstein files and earlier financial leaks is the presence of royalty and political elites who have appeared repeatedly across scandals, albeit in different contexts.

Yet some figures recur across these worlds of money and access. 

Lord Ashcroft, named in the Paradise Papers for offshore trusts potentially subject to UK tax scrutiny, appears again in broader discussions of elite influence. 

Peter Mandelson, Britain's former ambassador to the US, now faces renewed scrutiny after Epstein emails suggested close contact while Mandelson served in Gordon Brown's cabinet, including potential sharing of sensitive information.

Documents also show payments totalling about $75,000 to Mandelson and his partner in the early 2000s — payments he says he does not recall and believes may be fabricated. The Cabinet Office has referred aspects of the material to the police, and Mandelson has announced his resignation from the House of Lords.

Across the Atlantic, the files also revisit familiar political terrain. Donald Trump appears hundreds of times in the documents, though sworn testimony from Epstein's former house manager states Trump never stayed at Epstein's Palm Beach home or received massages there. Trump has said the documents further exonerate him, and the Justice Department has acknowledged that some material contains untrue information.

Steve Bannon's appearance is more explicit. Nearly two hours of interview footage show him questioning Epstein about his sexual offences, at one point asking if he is a "tier one" predator. Epstein replies that he is "the lowest", before acknowledging he is a criminal. Separate emails show Epstein gifting Bannon and his son matching Hermes Apple Watches worth $1,499 each in late 2018 and early 2019.

The cultural elite are also present. 

Filmmaker Brett Ratner appears in photographs alongside Epstein and two women; Ratner has denied sexual misconduct allegations unrelated to Epstein. Dr Mehmet Oz's travel was paid for by Epstein in 2004, according to a transaction report.

Kathryn Ruemmler, former White House counsel under Barack Obama and now general counsel at Goldman Sachs, once wrote that she "adored" Epstein — a remark she later publicly regretted. Woody Allen exchanged messages with Epstein about a possible museum or White House visit, joking that his "rap sheet" would bar him from security.

Emails also place Bill Clinton and Jeff Bezos at an after-party hosted by Ghislaine Maxwell in 2009. Clinton has previously acknowledged four trips on Epstein's plane in the early 2000s, saying they were connected to foundation work and included staff and security. Bezos has not commented.

Taken together, the Epstein files feel less like an outlier and more like a grim sequel to Panama and Paradise. Where those leaks mapped financial engineering, these documents expose social engineering — the cultivation of obligation, secrecy and silence. 

None of the files alone proves crimes beyond those Epstein was convicted of. But together, they illustrate how power operates across domains: money offshore, influence onshore, and impunity in between.

The story that emerges is not about one man, but about repetition. The Epstein Files do not overturn the lessons of the past decade. They complete them. Money, secrecy and desire, it turns out, were never separate stories. They were always chapters of the same book.