Which charities or foundations have been linked to Epstein's remaining assets as of 2025?
This fact-check may be outdated. Consider refreshing it to get the most current information.
Executive summary
Jeffrey Epstein’s remaining assets as of 2025 have been tied to a small set of entities that surfaced repeatedly in reporting: his own U.S. Virgin Islands charity Gratitude America, which made post‑conviction gifts to institutions like Harvard’s Hasty Pudding (and is noted as inactive since 2020) [1] [2], and a web of transfers and donations involving Les Wexner’s philanthropic vehicles that received large Epstein‑linked gifts and were later reorganized [3] [4]. Broader documentary releases from the House Oversight Committee and the DOJ have added paper trails but are heavily redacted, leaving significant uncertainty about remaining beneficiaries and the final disposition of estate assets [5] [6].
1. Gratitude America: Epstein’s own charity and its visible gifts
Gratitude America, the U.S. Virgin Islands‑based foundation created by Epstein, is the clearest, repeatedly documented channel: tax and university records show it made at least $50,000 gifts to Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Institute in 2016, 2018 and 2019 and donated $50,000 in 2018 and 2019 specifically to Hasty Pudding entities — donations that provoked public scrutiny and institutional decisions to redirect or announce offsets in the aftermath [1] [2].
2. The Wexner nexus: large transfers into Wexner family foundations
Reporting going back several years shows Epstein transferred substantial funds into Les Wexner‑connected philanthropic entities, including a reported $46 million donation that ultimately supported Wexner’s private foundation and later transfers into the Wexner Family Charitable Fund; those transfers are central to how Epstein’s money flowed into established charitable vehicles tied to Wexner [3]. Reporting also documents that assets Epstein helped manage or move were later folded into Wexner’s charitable structures — a linkage that scholars and journalists say complicates tracing the ultimate beneficiaries [3] [4].
3. Southern Trust and the U.S. Virgin Islands enforcement claims
Civil and criminal actions by the U.S. Virgin Islands alleged Epstein used a web of island entities, notably Southern Trust Company, to secure tax incentives and shield assets; settlements and judgments stemming from those claims consumed large portions of the estate and directly affected what remained to distribute to charities or trusts [7]. Those enforcement actions, and the roughly $105 million the territory recovered in a racketeering settlement, are cited as major drains on the estate that reshaped what philanthropic transfers were possible [7].
4. Other recipient foundations and institutional responses
Beyond Wexner vehicles and Gratitude America, reporting and document caches note Epstein funds touched institutions including university groups and regional foundations like The Columbus Foundation (via Wexner‑linked transfers) and prompted political recipients or universities to return or redirect donations once the ties were publicized [3] [8]. Institutions that accepted Epstein‑linked funds have in some cases publicly disclaimed ongoing relationships or moved to donate sums onward, illustrating the reputational and legal pressure on recipient charities [3].
5. New documents, redactions and the limits of the public record
The House Oversight Committee’s 2025 releases of estate documents and photos added granular material linking Epstein to networks of powerful people and to materials in his possession, but those releases are heavily redacted and intentionally limited in scope; major outlets and the committee itself warn that appearing in the files does not by itself prove wrongdoing or beneficiary status, and the redactions mean clear, legally admissible lines from estate assets to specific modern charities remain opaque [5] [6] [9].
6. Bottom line and open questions
By 2025 the public record most reliably links Epstein’s remaining estate activity to Gratitude America’s post‑conviction donations and to transfers into Les Wexner’s philanthropic entities, while litigation and settlements with the U.S. Virgin Islands and victims substantially reduced the estate’s size and complicated distributions [1] [2] [3] [7]. However, recent document dumps are incomplete and redacted, and reporting does not provide a definitive, public accounting of every remaining dollar or a full list of charities ultimately receiving estate funds — the chain of custody for many transfers remains contested and under review [5] [6].