Capital Economy, Business and Finance
Odey has strenuously denied all allegations against him – but if the claims succeed, damages could run to six figures for each claimant.
Two alleged victims of sexual assault by Crispin Odey are now pursuing civil claims for damages against him.
The two women instructed Jill Greenfield, a partner at Fieldfisher who has acted for sexual assault victims against Harvey Weinstein and the late Jeffrey Epstein, to send a formal letter of claim to Odey’s home in London last week, asking him to respond within 14 days, failing which she will start court proceedings.
Both claimants were among the five women who made sexual assault allegations dating from 1998 to 2021 against Odey in Tortoise’s podcast, Octopus: the allegations against Crispin Odey, published in December.
The first claimant, who approached Greenfield in June, says that Odey “must take personal ownership for what he has done now for decades to women.”
“Crispin Odey is a predator,” says the second claimant, who instructed Greenfield last week. “He has been manipulating, assaulting and harassing women for decades. He needs to be stopped and he needs to face the truth and be held accountable.”
Conservative donor and Brexit backer Odey, 64, is one of Britain’s best-known hedge fund managers and richest men. He was acquitted of indecent assault in 2021, over allegations that he sexually assaulted a young woman at his Chelsea home more than two decades before.
Odey Asset Management, which Odey founded in 1991, managed more than £10 billion worth of investments at its peak. It has been in crisis since allegations of sexual assault and harassment by 13 women against Odey were published in the Financial Times last month.
Odey was contacted for comment. He has previously strenuously denied all allegations against him.
The specific aim of the civil claims relates to personal injury and psychiatric harm as a result of alleged sexual assault. If the claim succeeds, damages are expected to run to six figures for each claimant.
Last week, Greenfield also wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority, the Treasury select committee, which has raised questions about the regulator’s investigation into Odey, as well as to Odey Asset Management, about ring-fencing some of the firm’s money for claims should the allegations be proven.
But the claims are ultimately about seeking accountability beyond the civil courts. “The investigative aspect of preparing a civil case can be really powerful in getting to the truth of what has happened,” Greenfield says. “No one is above the law”
Photograph Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images