JPMorgan Eyes Major Expansion of Chase in Europe

J.P. Morgan Chase is reportedly planning to expand its retail banking operations in Europe.

The bank, the largest in the U.S., aims to add at least three more countries to its operations in Germany and the U.K. by the end of 2030, the Financial Times (FT) reported Tuesday (June 16), citing sources familiar with the matter.

The sources said J.P. Morgan was considering expanding to France, Italy and Spain, but added no decisions have been made on new markets.

As the report notes, the bank launched Chase in the U.K. in 2021 as part of CEO Jamie Dimon’s plans to bring J.P. Morgan’s retail business to places beyond the U.S. An expansion into Germany followed last month.

“It has always been clear to us that we want to introduce Chase not only in the U.K., but also in Germany and other European countries. We have ambitious plans,” Dimon told the German newspaper Handelsblatt in 2023.

While neobanks like Revolut and Monzo bill themselves as digital alternatives to traditional banks, sources say J.P. Morgan thinks it can leverage the lender’s established brand and large balance sheet to bring in new customers.

“Chase is trying to find that middle space where it can be a more innovative and digital-forward bank, but really lean on the brand of J.P. Morgan,” said one source familiar with its plans.

Research by PYMNTS has charted the rise of digital banking, with such lenders now serving as the main financial institution for 13.8% of U.S. consumers, just ahead of local banks and not far behind regional banks and credit unions.

“National banks still dominate, but fewer than half of consumers say a national bank is their main provider,” PYMNTS wrote earlier this year.

“The rise of digital banks is not evenly distributed across the population. It is driven by younger adults, lower-income households and people without college degrees who appear to value convenience and mobile-first access over branch networks.”

The FT report added that Chase has more than 3 million customers in the U.K., while Marcus, Goldman Sachs’ app-based saving tool, has roughly 1 million British users.

The report also points out that Chase’s potential for growth in Great Britain could be hindered by the county’s ringfencing regulations, requiring banks with more than £35 billion in deposits to isolate retail operations from riskier areas of their business.

J.P. Morgan recently hired Kunal Malani, a former executive at Monzo, to oversee its efforts in the U.K., the report added.