JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon insists he is not running for the US presidency, but that didn't stop him from using his annual shareholders' letter to lay out at a 10-point manifesto to restore America's fortunes.
Wall Street’s best-known banker – a former member of president Trump’s disbanded business advisory council and longtime critic of recent “mismanagement” of the US economy – told investors that the American dream was “fraying for many” and that JPMorgan would “take advocacy to the next level”.
To address “what is holding back growth and opportunity”, Mr Dimon said policymakers should reform a dysfunctional mortgage market and tackle “soaring healthcare costs”.
His laundry list of issues demanding attention also includes education, immigration, infrastructure, regulation, the tax system, litigation, the labour market and budgeting and planning.
‘Unique capabilities’
He called on CEOs to “get involved” and use their “unique capabilities, data and resources” in designing solutions. JPMorgan is strengthening its own public policy teams to “take advocacy to the next level”.
With 10,000 staff in London, JPMorgan has the biggest presence in the City of any of its peers, but Brexit merited just two passing mentions in the 27,000- word missive.
Instead the section on risk homed on on the “increasing” dangers of bad policy arising out of everything from “monetary policy, trade snafus or simply deep political gridlock in an increasingly complex world”, echoing comments from Mr Dimon on his last earnings call.
The banker also repeated warnings on the dangers of cyber security, which “may very well be the biggest threat to the US financial system”.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2019
