Epstein advised Starlink rival OneWeb's founder, emails show

New York: Jeffrey Epstein acted as an adviser in the creation of OneWeb Ltd., a low-Earth orbit satellite network that has become the world's largest rival to Elon Musk's Starlink, according to emails released by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The disgraced financier served as a confidante to OneWeb founder Greg Wyler as the entrepreneur sought funding after launching the company in 2012, the emails show. Wyler later secured investments from SoftBank Group Corp. and Qualcomm Inc. Wyler did not dispute the accuracy of the emails reviewed by Bloomberg.

"Epstein said he had professional relationships with and advised many in the tech industry" during that period, Wyler said in an emailed statement.


Epstein "did discuss investing, but no investment ever occurred," Wyler said. "More broadly, I never accepted any offer or request he made to invest in or support any company I was associated with."

A spokesperson for Eutelsat Communications SA, which now owns OneWeb, said Wyler left the company when it entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2020. OneWeb was later restructured and refinanced, emerging under new ownership and governance.

OneWeb was rescued from bankruptcy by the UK government and India's Bharti Enterprises Ltd., before being combined with Eutelsat in 2023.

Wyler is now founder and chief executive officer of E-Space, another satellite network startup. The company broke ground on a headquarters in Arlington, Texas, in October, a project the city said would create 2,000 jobs. E-Space did not respond to requests for comment.

In a post on X late Wednesday, responding to disclosures that mentioned him, Wyler said his interactions with Epstein "at all times were professional."

Many of the emails are abbreviated, misspelled or lack context, at times making it unclear whether deals were pursued or merely discussed. Still, they shed light on negotiations and meetings where business intersected with globe-trotting personal lives, including references to Musk and other billionaires.

The Wyler emails are part of a trove released last Friday that details Epstein's connections to prominent investors, executives, lawyers and political figures.

In May 2014, Wyler shared a term sheet with Epstein while discussing a potential investment involving Alphabet Inc.'s Google.

The two also wrote about visiting Necker Island, owned by Richard Branson - an early OneWeb investor - and exchanged messages about private jets, with Epstein introducing Wyler to an aircraft broker.

Wyler appeared on a flight manifest with Epstein and requested use of his helicopter, while Epstein sought Wyler's advice on improving broadband at his estate. Bloomberg