What You Have to Know
- A administration shuffle in mid-2021 put Jennifer Piepszak and Marianne Lake into the highlight because the board ready to grant Dimon a bonus for remaining CEO by way of 2026.
- This yr, each girls led the mixing of First Republic; Dimon praised the trouble as “wonderful.”
- Insiders say a number of different executives are additionally seen as coming into the fray.
Midway by way of Jamie Dimon’s particular incentive to remain 5 extra years atop JPMorgan Chase & Co., insiders are predicting extra senior management adjustments to assist potential successors collect expertise.
A administration shuffle in mid-2021 put two proficient deputies — Jennifer Piepszak and Marianne Lake — into the highlight because the board ready to grant Dimon a bonus if he stays chief govt officer one other half-decade.
However with neither the clear frontrunner, colleagues say the 2 consumer-banking co-heads will seemingly have to sort out new assignments earlier than one is able to run the entire firm.
In the meantime, Piepszak has expressed reticence prior to now about taking the highest job, whereas Lake has at the very least entertained alternatives elsewhere, folks accustomed to the matter mentioned, asking to not be recognized discussing non-public talks. And Dimon reveals no indicators he views his retention package deal as a profession nearer.
Such is the endlessly evolving succession buzz atop the nation’s largest financial institution, the place life underneath 67-year-old Dimon is extra worthwhile than ever, and life after him is simply as hazy. The query of who would possibly steward the agency is one which looms over the business — providing its most outstanding perch in addition to duty for a $3.9 trillion steadiness sheet.
JPMorgan vs. Morgan Stanley
The limbo at JPMorgan compares with the crisp succession planning this yr at Morgan Stanley, the place longtime chief James Gorman, 65, introduced he was able to conduct a bake-off for his job.
Within the ensuing months, Gorman and the board reviewed a slate of viable candidates, made their decide and persuaded the others to stay round — establishing an unusually clean handoff for Jan. 1.
One key distinction is that Gorman mentioned he was desirous to attempt one thing new. Dimon’s ardour is overseeing the behemoth he helped construct.
This account of the state of play in JPMorgan is predicated on interviews with greater than a dozen present and former executives and others near the agency’s management.
Although a JPMorgan spokesperson declined to remark, the financial institution has repeatedly provided assurances that its succession planning is powerful and constantly up to date. As Dimon himself advised traders this yr: “The board may be very comfy that we’ve bought actually high decisions right here.”
JPMorgan has already established that President Daniel Pinto, 60, is able to take over in an emergency or accelerated handoff. He co-led the agency in 2020 when Dimon underwent coronary heart surgical procedure.
The larger query is which particular person the financial institution would possibly select from the following technology for an orderly transition and a protracted tenure.
Lake vs. Piepszak
That’s why most eyes are on Lake, 54, and Piepszak, 53. Insiders say others are additionally seen as coming into the fray — comparable to Troy Rohrbaugh and Marc Badrichani, who co-lead markets and securities providers, in addition to funds head Takis Georgakopoulos and chief technique and progress officer Sanoke Viswanathan.
Succession is a formidable problem for Dimon, placing his legacy at stake. He has run JPMorgan for 18 years, rising it by way of the 2008 monetary disaster after which adapting it to an period of stiffer regulation and digital banking. He got here out forward once more throughout this yr’s turmoil in regional banking, scooping up First Republic to bolster JPMorgan’s presence in Silicon Valley.
Whereas Dimon’s observe file might give the following CEO steady footing, it has additionally raised questions on who else is as much as the duty.
Piepszak has gained momentum as the highest candidate in recent times, clinching a sequence of promotions and constructing relationships with different senior executives, colleagues mentioned. Although she has privately advised a number of those who she isn’t positive she desires the job, one govt mentioned that’s not the case in the present day. Regardless, if the board in the end desires her, it is going to strategy her.
Lake, Piepszak’s shut good friend and mentor-turned-co-head atop the agency’s big client banking enterprise, has prolonged her tenure as a senior govt recognized for an in-the-weeds understanding of the agency.
Her identify has come up in various CEO searches and, in some instances, she has entertained overtures. She interviewed to run Wells Fargo & Co. in 2019 and this yr held preliminary talks with PayPal Holdings Inc. about that agency’s high job.