JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told investors the bank's succession plans were underway and that he no longer sees a five-year timeline for stepping down.
Dimon, 68, has helmed the bank for more than 18 years, outlasting many other industry chiefs. In previous years, he had answered questions about succession by saying he would stay five more years.
On Monday, he cited a roster of senior JPMorgan executives with a deep knowledge of its major businesses who could take over.
“We’re well on the way, we’re moving people around,” Dimon said. “The timetable is not five years anymore. It’s up to the board. It’s not up to me.
“I still have the energy I’ve always had,” Dimon added. “When I can’t put on the jersey, I should leave.”
Dimon was awarded a special bonus in 2021 that gave him the incentive to stay on as CEO until 2026, the New York Post reports. If he were to remain at the helm of the bank for another 18 months beyond that, he would be eligible for a $52.62 million bonus.
However, if Dimon were to take either an elected or un-elected government job, he would be entitled to take the bonus and leave earlier. It has been rumored that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is considering Dimon for Treasury secretary.
“I want the next president, whoever it is, to put the other party [members] in their Cabinet,” Dimon, who has publicly praised Trump’s economic policies, said last month. “I would like to see practitioners go back to the government. I want to help my country.”
Dimon is worth $2.2 billion, according to Forbes. Last year, JPMorgan Chase paid Dimon $35.1 million in total compensation.
JPMorgan's board recently identified Jennifer Piepszak and Troy Rohrbaugh, co-CEOs of its commercial and investment bank, as candidates for the top job. Marianne Lake, CEO of consumer and community banking, and Mary Erdoes, CEO of asset and wealth management, are also in the running.
Several executives who served under Dimon have gone on to run other major financial institutions, making his succession plans a longtime subject of speculation.
Last month, the board said its top priority was to “plan for an orderly CEO transition in the medium term.”
“We attribute today's weakness (in shares) to a lack of interest to buy back stock at current prices and a shorter CEO transition timeline,” David George, an analyst at Robert W. Baird, wrote in a note Monday.
JPMorgan's stock closed at a record high on Friday after rising nearly 15% this year, broadly in line with an S&P index of bank shares.
Dimon said the high price would deter stock buybacks.
JPMorgan has the largest market share of U.S. account holders among the nation's lenders, holding 11.3% of retail deposits, and wants to expand further.
“We aim to cover 75% of the U.S. population within an accessible drive time and to ensure we serve more Americans in smaller cities, America's heartland,” said Jennifer Roberts, CEO of consumer banking at Chase.
“We are setting a new objective of covering over 50% of the population in each of the 48 states.”
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