Investigation shows: US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick Lied - Six Years of Business With Epstein

Howard Lutnick, US Commerce Secretary under Trump, has a major problem. And it grows with every document that surfaces from the Epstein files. Lutnick had consistently claimed that he and his wife cut off all contact with Jeffrey Epstein after 2005. At the time, they had become neighbors of his property in New York, Epstein had given them a tour of his house, and Lutnick later said he had sworn “never again to be in a room with that disgusting person.” It sounds like a clean break. It is not.

The files first show this: Lutnick and his family visited Epstein on his private island in 2012. In the same year, the two signed an investment contract for a digital advertising company called AdFin Solutions. The contract was drafted five days after the island visit. In 2017, Epstein donated fifty thousand dollars for a charity dinner in Lutnick’s honor. In 2018, the two coordinated how they could stop a museum renovation in their neighborhood. That alone would already be enough to expose the official version as untenable.

But now further documents are coming to light through research. The trail led from India to England to a former senior director at BGC Financial, a Cantor Fitzgerald affiliate, who says he suffered retaliation after reporting violations at the firm. In 2019, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission imposed a three million dollar fine on BGC for violations related to supervision, reporting requirements, and record keeping. What these documents show is clear: Lutnick was not simply a small minority investor in AdFin, as his circle claimed. He was financially connected with Epstein in this company for at least six years, increasingly took control of it, and ultimately sat on the board.

An archived version of the AdFin website from July 2015 lists Howard Lutnick as one of five “board members and investors” of the company. Jeffrey Epstein does not appear in this public listing, although he continued to hold shares in the firm.

At the end of 2013, Cantor Fitzgerald, where Lutnick served as CEO, loaned AdFin two million dollars. Epstein was one of three non Cantor shareholders who had to approve the loan - and he did. In early 2014, co founder David Mitchell wrote to Epstein that Cantor would now gain a board seat, but Epstein would remain an influential investor in the company.

In January 2014, project developer and co investor David Mitchell informed Jeffrey Epstein by email of further details regarding Cantor’s financing. Through the loan, Cantor would be able to obtain a seat on AdFin’s board, Mitchell wrote. At the same time, he pointed out that together with Epstein and a company founder, he could as a group block certain company decisions. While Cantor expanded its influence, Epstein thus remained a significant investor in the background.

In February 2016, Mitchell informed investors in writing that Cantor would invest an additional 1,750,000 dollars and would control the board. Lutnick joined the board. The letter explicitly stated that Cantor would “effectively control decision making at both the board and shareholder level.”

The document shows two signature pages of a “Series A Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement.” On the left side, Howard W. Lutnick signed as president for CVFHI, LLC. On the right side, Jeffrey Epstein signed as president of Southern Trust Company, Inc. Both signatures relate to an agreement in connection with a preferred stock investment in AdFin Solutions, Inc.

Epstein’s shares were thereby diluted, from 8.8 to 5.6 percent - but he remained the third largest investor in AdFin. In February 2018, Epstein wanted to exit. His accountant Richard Kahn informed the company’s chief executive that Epstein was prepared to sell his shares at the entry price of 875,000 dollars and asked that this be communicated to the existing investors - including Lutnick and Cantor. Six weeks later, the AdFin CEO wrote back that they had tried to get a response from “Howard and Jonathan,” but there was no interest in purchasing.

An email exchange dated May 28, 2018 shows that a person using the initials “HWL” - Lutnick’s middle name is William - was communicating with Jeffrey Epstein about the company AdFin. It indicates that Lutnick was apparently aware of Epstein’s involvement and that business contacts continued longer than publicly portrayed. In the correspondence, Epstein inquired about AdFin’s future prospects. In a response marked “confidential” and labeled as property of Cantor Fitzgerald LP, “HWL” wrote that the company was finally generating revenue and that the coming twelve months would have to lead to economic independence.

On May 20, 2018, Lutnick then wrote directly to Epstein regarding the planned expansion of the Frick Collection, which would affect their park view. A week later, he asked Epstein to send a lawyer to delay the construction. Epstein responded through an intermediary: “WILL DO.”

The email dated May 28, 2018 documents an exchange referencing Howard Lutnick. The message states that “Jeffrey” replied with “WILL DO!” Earlier, in an email dated May 27, Lutnick had announced that he would engage a lawyer to stop a construction project directly across the street that would include bus access, a loading dock, and a three story building affecting light and view. He urged drafting a letter and taking legal steps to at least delay the decision. The email ends with the note “Sent from my iPhone” and is marked as a forwarded message.

On the same day, Epstein asked in an email directly to the account with the initials “HWL” how he assessed AdFin’s prospects. The reply was optimistic: the company was finally generating revenue and the next twelve months would be decisive.

The document shows an email exchange dated May 28, 2018 between Jeffrey Epstein and a contact identified by the initials “HWL.” The correspondence initially discusses construction and renovation plans, including a possible completion in about four years and architects not yet selected. Epstein asks how long it will take until “Sherry” is ready and he can acquire her guest house. In another passage, “HWL” evaluates the company’s economic situation optimistically, writing that revenue is finally being generated and that the coming twelve months must lead to economic independence. The emails were each sent from an iPhone and document direct, personal communication between the parties involved.

There is therefore direct, written communication between Lutnick and Epstein about their shared company - at a time when Epstein had for years been a registered convicted sex offender. AdFin closed its doors in October 2019, three months after Epstein’s arrest for sex crimes and two months after his death in prison. The Commerce Department has not responded to a request for comment. Cantor Fitzgerald has not responded either. The resignation of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick would, for us, be the only logical consequence of the full scope of these research findings. Anything else would be untenable.