A top United Kingdom financial regulator has launched an official internal investigation into how it handled a whistleblower who highlighted alleged ties between the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, following the tragic death of the whistleblower late last month.
The British banker Simon Andriesz died at the age of 57 in Cornwall, a development confirmed over the weekend by the campaign group Transparency Task Force, of which he was an active member. Andriesz had formerly worked as a managing director at BGC Group, a major financial brokerage where Lutnick had served as chief executive. Over several years, Andriesz had accused the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of failing to hold his former employer to account for alleged wrongdoing. He had also been incorrectly informed by the regulator that he did not qualify for whistleblower protection.
Andriesz’s prolonged battle with financial authorities spanned nearly a decade. He had initially spent years raising concerns about his former employer, beginning with internal disclosures regarding accounting irregularities at BGC in 2016. Just a year after raising those internal alarms, Andriesz was sacked from his position.
Following his dismissal, Andriesz expanded his disclosures. In 2020 and 2021, he reportedly told the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that Lutnick had undeclared business ties with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In response to these historical claims, Lutnick has consistently maintained that he had no "personal or professional relationship" with Epstein.
Later, Andriesz unearthed a critical piece of evidence while reviewing the publicly accessible Epstein files. He discovered an email chain dating back to 2018 suggesting that Lutnick and Epstein had discussed the business prospects of a startup in which they were both involved. Epstein ultimately died in a federal jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
Despite bringing forward these revelations, Andriesz expressed deep frustration with the lack of official action. Speaking to the BBC’s File on 4 Investigates earlier this summer, he stated that regulatory authorities in both the United States and the United Kingdom had failed to hold BGC and its parent company, Cantor Fitzgerald, properly to account. He further argued that these institutions had failed to protect him from potential professional retaliation.
In his later interviews and communications, Andriesz sharply criticized the FCA for the way it mistreated whistleblowers. He repeatedly raised concerns about the heavy toll that the exhausting whistleblowing process had taken on his family, his professional career, and his personal health and well-being.
Adding to these administrative failures, the FCA had previously provided Andriesz with misleading information regarding his legal status. The regulator erroneously told him that he would not qualify for statutory whistleblower protection because his identity had already become known to the public and within the industry. Following complaints, the FCA eventually issued an apology to Andriesz, admitting error and conceding that further guidance and specialized training would need to be provided to its internal whistleblowing team to prevent similar mistakes in the future.
In the wake of Andriesz’s death, the FCA confirmed that it has now tasked a newly appointed board member to investigate the precise manner in which staff handled Andriesz’s concerns and regulatory filings.
"We are very sorry to hear of Mr Andriesz’s death," an FCA spokesperson said in a statement. "Our thoughts are with his family and friends. Since expressing our condolences, we’d asked Lea Paterson, who has just joined our board as a non-executive director, to review how we interacted with Mr Andriesz to learn any lessons for the future."
However, this internal review has already drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers and oversight advocates. The all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on investment fraud and fairer financial services has expressed strong concern that the FCA is effectively being allowed to "mark its own homework" through an internal review conducted by its own newly appointed board member. The parliamentary group has formally called on the financial regulator to hire and pay an independent party to conduct a thorough, forensic, and objective evaluation of its overall handling of whistleblowers.
John McDonnell, the Labour Member of Parliament and chair of the APPG, voiced his strong dissatisfaction with the regulator’s approach to accountability.
"It is vital that this time a truly independent and non-conflicted organisation carries out the work needed," McDonnell said. "If the FCA refuses to respond positively, the APPG will consider all alternatives, including conducting its own call for evidence from whistleblowers who have interacted with the regulator."
Throughout the public scrutiny surrounding these disclosures, Howard Lutnick has not been accused of any legal wrongdoing in relation to Jeffrey Epstein or his criminal enterprise. Representatives and statements on behalf of Lutnick have previously emphasized complete condemnation of the disgraced financier’s actions.
"I unequivocally condemn the conduct attributed to Jeffrey Epstein and everyone who participated in his illegal activities," Lutnick has previously stated. "The survivors of his crimes deserve our respect and support."
Meanwhile, representatives for BGC Group have responded to the tragic news of Andriesz’s passing while maintaining their historical stance regarding his internal corporate allegations.
"BGC has long disputed Mr Andriesz’s allegations but does not intend to relitigate these matters at this sad time," a BGC spokesperson said. "BGC is sorry to hear this tragic news and expresses our condolences to Mr Andriesz’s family."
