JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon called Tuesday for the government to revisit post-crisis rules on banks, saying that the system is now safer and crediting a “more business-friendly” environment for boosting the bank’s performance.
“We are not looking to throw out the entirety of Dodd-Frank or other rules…” Dimon wrote in a letter to shareholders. “It is, however, appropriate to open up the rulebook in the light of day and rework the rules and regulations that don’t work well or are unnecessary.”
Dimon said the problem of “too big to fail” banks has been solved and that taxpayers would not be asked to bail out a big bank if one were to fail, thanks to much higher capital levels required at banks, new regulations and a new government process for putting banks through bankruptcy.
Accordingly, he said, the government should revisit those rules to simplify capital requirements for banks and adjust some of the rules they face and the relationships they have with regulators.
The banking industry, with congressional Republicans, is expected to mount various challenges to post-crisis rules implemented by former President Barack Obama.
Although Dimon’s letter did not mention President Trump by name, it did note that “the anticipated reversal of many negatives and the expectation of a more business-friendly environment” have improved the bank’s results.
Trump has pledged to undo many Dodd-Frank rules blamed for banks’ problems. Earlier Tuesday, Trump told a group of CEOs at the White House that he planned to do “a major haircut” on Dodd-Frank.
Among the biggest geopolitical risks facing JPMorgan, Dimon also wrote, is rising anti-globalization sentiment, including anti-immigrant politics.
“We do not believe globalization will reverse course — we believe trade has been absolutely critical for growth around the world and has benefited billions of people,” Dimon wrote.
