Ex-JPMorgan banker refiles harassment claims in federal court

A former JPMorgan Chase leveraged finance banker has filed an expanded federal lawsuit against the bank, alleging that racism and sexual coercion by a female superior derailed a once-lucrative career, weeks after voluntarily dismissing an earlier version of the case in New York state court.

Chirayu Rana, who is of Nepali descent, filed the new 82-page complaint in Manhattan federal court, adding two JPMorgan managing directors and a bank associate as defendants alongside the company and executive director Lorna Hajdini.

As reported by Reuters, Rana said colleagues on an otherwise all-white team made his heritage "the punchline for a stream of degrading jokes," including references to him as a "monkey" and "brown boy."

A JPMorgan spokesperson said the bank stands behind its own review of the matter. "We don't believe there's any merit to these claims," the spokesperson told Reuters, adding that the complainant declined to take part in the bank's internal investigation even as other employees cooperated.

How the case got here

The dispute traces back to a state-court complaint filed in April under a pseudonym, which accused Hajdini of using her seniority to pressure Rana into months of unwanted sexual contact, threaten his career if he resisted, and direct racial slurs at him.

Hajdini has denied every element of that account and has countersued Rana for defamation, arguing his allegations were designed to inflict maximum reputational damage and attract press coverage.

That first case never reached a substantive ruling. Rana asked the court to dismiss it himself and agreed to cover a portion of the legal fees for JPMorgan and Hajdini.

His current legal team – a new five-lawyer group that took over the matter in June – had indicated the original filing did not go far enough and sought the dismissal specifically so a broader complaint could be refiled in federal court instead.

JPMorgan and Hajdini's lawyers characterized that maneuver as an attempt at forum shopping, but Rana's attorney, Jon Norinsberg, rejected that framing, telling Reuters the new complaint would "hold the defendants fully accountable in a court of law for the catastrophic harm they caused to Mr. Rana's career, reputation and life."

What the new complaint adds

The refiled version adds JPMorgan managing directors Brandon Graffeo and Jon Wolter, along with associate Kelly Crowe, as named defendants.

Rana alleges Graffeo led efforts to degrade him and that Graffeo and Wolter worked to damage his standing in the private credit and leveraged finance industry after he resigned under pressure last October – a campaign he says led a subsequent employer to fire him this past April. He says Crowe referred to him as an "HR liability."

The complaint also includes new allegations that colleagues suggested he conduct business in rupees and that one told him to "run before we call ICEE [sic] on your family," an apparent reference to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Rana's 21-count complaint seeks compensatory and punitive damages under federal civil rights statutes, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, and New York state and city human rights laws, according to Reuters.

The case is one of several disputes involving JPMorgan employees that have drawn heavy social media attention this year, adding reputational noise for a bank that reported $37.6 billion in first-half 2026 profit, including second-quarter net income of $21.2 billion driven in no small part by its role in SpaceX's mega-IPO.

In one of those disputes, a FINRA arbitration panel ordered the bank to pay $4.25 million to a former wealth manager who was fired for expensing a Super Bowl platter; the giant Wall Street lender has challenged that decision.

More recently last month, a woman identified as a former JPMorgan employee was caught on video emptying out, then walking away with a commemorative trash can during the parade celebrating the New York Knicks' NBA championship win against the San Antonio Spurs.