One of the world’s most celebrated financiers, Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, has been accused of exploiting his position at the storied bank to abuse women who worked with him.
The claims against Sir Evelyn, two years after his death, come from several women who said they felt unable to raise their concerns while he was still alive, because of his position within the bank and the British establishment. They spoke to the Guardian on condition of anonymity.
Among the allegations are that he seriously sexually assaulted and harassed several women in the mid and late 1990s when they worked for NM Rothschild.
Sir Evelyn had a reputation for being autocratic and feared, with one source describing him as “totalitarian”. He was a financial adviser to the late Queen Elizabeth, whom he accompanied to Royal Ascot races, and was knighted in 1989.
Although historical, their claims are likely to raise questions about the working culture experienced by women within the Rothschild banking empire, which comprises a complex range of wealth advisory and investment banking services.
Sir Evelyn, who died aged 91, was chair of NM Rothschild for more than 20 years and also served on the boards of the Economist and the parent company of the Daily Telegraph. A scion of one of the most famous dynasties in global banking, he spent 44 years working within Rothschild family businesses.
According to sources who spoke to the Guardian, he used his office within NM Rothschild, a stone’s throw from the Bank of England in the City of London, to force himself upon women over several years. More than eight sources, some with direct experience of events, described incidents dating from the mid and late 1990s. However, multiple sources claimed that this kind of misconduct by Sir Evelyn went unchecked for decades.
Sources alleged that he would “take his pick” of junior staff at the bank and shower them with attention before behaving inappropriately towards them. Their accounts described incidents in the financial group’s old London offices, partly now demolished and rebuilt on St Swithin’s Lane, the site first occupied by the bank in 1809.
The claims include serious sexual assaults. One included a violent assault of a member of staff when she was a young woman working for him. Another allegation is that he put his hands down a different woman’s top and under her underwear to grope her. And a third woman claimed she was forced to perform a sex act on him while he sat on his desk.
These allegations, dating to the mid and late 1990s, were put to lawyers acting for Rothschild & Co, the group that succeeded NM Rothschild. The allegations were also put to the Rothschild family via the same lawyers. The Guardian also asked whether anyone at the bank or the Rothschild family was aware of the allegations, and if so, whether they tried to tackle the issues.
Lawyers acting for Rothschild & Co refused to answer whether there was any information related to misconduct by Sir Evelyn, stating only that an “initial review of their records” yielded “nothing”, but also saying they did not have enough information to investigate further. No response was received on behalf of the family.
The Guardian also asked about the bank’s current and historical approach to complaints about sexual and other non-financial misconduct.
Via lawyers, the banking group said: “We deal with any complaint quickly and decisively. We prize the culture we have developed over the years and there is no place for such behaviour in our culture.”
They added: “If any inappropriate behaviour is alleged, including sexual misconduct, we seek to establish exactly what has happened. Whilst a formal complaint may not always be made, we investigate allegations of behaviour that falls below our standards.”
Sources claimed Sir Evelyn would encourage women to think he could help with their careers, presenting himself as a potential sponsor or advocate in financial services. He would then request that they attend in his office on the pretence of a task or work-related conversation before harassing or assaulting them, it is alleged.
If they expressed concerns about his actions to other members of staff, they would have their employment terminated, often with payouts, if they agreed to keep his activities confidential, it is alleged.
“He would ask questions aimed at finding out if you were well connected. If you weren’t, then I think you were more likely to be regarded as fair game,” one woman claimed.
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A different source alleged: “It was his kingdom and he enjoyed a sort of absolute rule, people knew about payouts and saw staff who all looked the same being churned through.”
Sir Evelyn formally resigned as a director of NM Rothschild in March 2004, according to the British business registry, Companies House.
According to the Rothschild Archive, which catalogues the history of the banking dynasty, he gave up his chairships of several of its organisations in 2003, after 44 years in the family business. As well as serving on the boards of the Telegraph Media Group and the Economist, he was also a director of the trust that owns the Globe theatre.
Rothschild is one of the City of London’s most renowned institutions, and is among the most storied European banking institutions, with origins tracing back to 15th-century Frankfurt, Germany.
The Rothschild family remains entwined with the institution, as a significant shareholder. As well as being a financial adviser to Queen Elizabeth II, Sir Evelyn also founded a charity with Mark Shand, the late brother of the current queen and was frequently pictured in conversation with King Charles when he was the Prince of Wales.
He shared a passion for horse racing with the royal family and was chair of United Racehorses, which owned race courses at Sandown and Epsom. He was married three times.
A range of high-profile figures attended his funeral, and his eulogy was delivered by Bill Clinton.
The Rothschild group, which combines an array of financial services including investment banking and wealth management, was at the heart of the UK’s privatisation wave in the 1980s.
Its London arm, NM Rothschild & Sons, was founded in 1809 by Nathan Mayer Rothschild, close to the Bank of England. Such was the sharp rise of its merchant banking activities that by 1826 it effectively saved the UK’s central bank with a loan of gold.
NM Rothschild & Sons later merged with another arm of the family’s European banking empire, Paris Orléans SA, and in 2011, the company rebranded from NM Rothschild & Sons to Rothschild & Co. In 2015, the parent company of the Rothschild Group, which was previously called Paris Orléans, also changed its name to Rothschild & Co, according to the Rothschild Archive.
The claims against Sir Evelyn come against a backdrop of historical complaints against men who held positions of power, notably the former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed.
Since his death two years ago, a number of women have come forward to make allegations against Fayed, with incidents dating back to the mid-1970s.
