Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase, claimed that the bank he helms — the largest bank in the U.S. — is likely one of the biggest users of blockchain technology, in an interview at the Financial Markets Quality Conference on Tuesday.
“We're probably one of the bigger users of blockchain, an actual user, like a real user,” Dimon said when asked about innovative technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence. “It's just a database.”
However, Dimon, a long-time crypto skeptic who has compared bitcoin to “a pet rock,” is not doing an about-face on the industry he has called “worthless.” In fact, the 68-year-old once again used his favorite laugh line: “Cryptocurrency… I call this a pet rock.”
That said, it appears that Dimon has gained begrudging respect for the technology that underlies cryptocurrencies, noting that blockchain is “a great way to share data” and establish trust between banks and their customers.
JPMorgan forked a version of Ethereum to create its private, permissioned network called Onyx in 2020. The system is designed for wholesale payments transactions, peer-to-peer lending and borrowing as well as cross-border payments.
The Onyx network has processed over $700 billion worth of transactions and counts firms like Goldman Sachs, DBS Bank and BNP Paribas among its users.
Dimon has been a crypto-dismissive champion of blockchain for years. At Davos, Switzerland in 2021, the banking magnate called bitcoin a “hyped-up fraud” but blockchain an “efficient” way to move money around. (Bitcoin is up over 40% since then, according to The Block's price page.)
“We've been talking about blockchain for 12 years, not much has happened — it ain't like AI,” Dimon said on Tuesday.
Dimon, who once said in a congressional hearing that he'd ban crypto “if I was the government,” is reportedly in the running to be named Treasury Secretary if Donald Trump wins reelection, a position he is seemingly softening on.
While Dimon said that Chase is unlikely to lend against cryptocurrencies, he is fairly sure clients have access to some crypto services through the bank.
“If you want to do it … it's a free country. I believe in a free country, do what you want,” Dimon said.
