JPMorgan Chase Begins Offering Clients Access to Bitcoin

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Monday (May 19) that the bank now offers its clients access to bitcoin.

Dimon announced this at the bank’s annual investor day, while reiterating his own skepticism about digital currency, CNBC reported Monday.

“We are going to allow you to buy it,” Dimon said, per the report. “We’re not going to custody it. We’re going to put it in statements for clients.”

Dimon added that he remains concerned about issues around bitcoin, such as money laundering, lack of clarity in terms of ownership and use in illicit activities, according to the report.

“I don’t think you should smoke, but I defend your right to smoke,” Dimon said, per the report. “I defend your right to buy bitcoin.”

It was reported in December 2023 that Dimon had been a vocal critic of cryptocurrencies for some time and that he told a Senate Banking Committee hearing that if he had the power, he would shut down the entire industry.

While he criticized cryptocurrencies, he had different views on blockchain technology, and JPMorgan actively embraced that technology for various projects, including the development of its proprietary stablecoin, JPM Coin.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) provided new guidance March 28 saying that FDIC-supervised institutions can engage in crypto-related activities without receiving prior FDIC approval, provided they adequately manage the associated risks.

Previously, under guidance that the FDIC rescinded, the agency required prior notification of crypto-related activities.

“With today’s action, the FDIC is turning the page on the flawed approach of the past three years,” FDIC Acting Chairman Travis Hill said at the time in a press release. “I expect this to be one of several steps the FDIC will take to lay out a new approach for how banks can engage in crypto- and blockchain-related activities in accordance with safety and soundness standards.”

Institutional adoption of digital assets like cryptocurrencies and tokenized securities is seen as inevitable, although risk remains an obstacle, PYMNTS reported May 13.

The new wave of adoption is being led by highly regulated institutions, which are grappling with the core question of risk across the blockchain.