JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon Slams Crypto, Says He Would ‘Close it Down’

“If I was the government, I’d close it down”

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon is an outspoken critic of crypto assets and has compared them in the past to the tulip hype of the Dutch Golden Age and even a pet rock. At a recent Senate Banking Committee hearing he said that, were he in a government position, he would ban crypto altogether.

In a reply to another crypto sceptic, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Dimon acknowledged her claims that the main purpose of crypto is to serve organised crime, terrorists, and others – a tune many in the space would be very familiar with.

I’ve always been deeply opposed to crypto, Bitcoin, et cetera. You pointed out the true use case for it is criminals, drug traffickers, anti-money laundering, tax avoidance, and that is a use case because it is somewhat anonymous.

Jamie Dimon

Apart from Dimon, there were eight other bank chiefs who all agreed that crypto needs the same regulatory oversight as the banks when it comes to financial crime. Senator Warren, usually not an ally of large banks, concurred, mentioning her introduction of legislation to address these concerns.

When it comes to banking policy, I am not usually holding hands with the CEOs of multi-billion dollar banks, but this is a matter of national security.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren

Hypocritical at Best

For anyone not familiar with the matter, not only has JPMorgan Chase ventured into its own crypto projects, but they also have an interesting relationship with the law.

For example, JPM Coin is a digital currency by JPMorgan Chase, designed for instant payment transfers and settling transactions rapidly, leveraging Quorum, an Ethereum-based software, to enhance payment efficiencies. Onyx, also formed by JPMorgan Chase, is a blockchain initiative focusing on value exchange and digital assets, featuring platforms like Liink for data sharing, Coin Systems for real-time transfers, Onyx Digital Assets, and Blockchain Launch for new technology development.

This appears to clash with the CEO’s statements, especially in light of the push for the dismantling of crypto, which popular crypto lawyer John E. Deaton commented on as well – even if for completely different reasons.

JPMorgan Chase has paid approximately USD $38.995 billion (AUD $59.543 billion) in fines since 2000 for various violations, including a recent USD $4 million (AUD $6.11 million) SEC fine for deleting crucial emails. Noteworthy cases include a USD $920 million (AUD $1.4 billion) penalty for fraudulent trading in precious metals and U.S. Treasuries, and over USD $2 billion (AUD $3 billion) in fines for failing to report activities related to Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, underscoring significant compliance and ethical breaches.