Wednesday, March 27, 2013

JP Morgan CEO: Volcker ‘Doesn’t Understand Capital Markets’

Fox Business Network anchor Melissa Francis got an exclusive interview with the CEO of JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Jamie Dimon. After touring bank branches in Florida, Francis got Jamie Dimon to share what he really thinks about the so-called “Volcker Rule.”

The regulation, a specific part of the Dodd-Frank Act, was originally proposed by former Federal Reserve Chariman Paul Volcker. It’s meant to prohibit U.S. banks from making speculative investments.

JPMorgan’s Dimon obviously doesn’t think a whole lot of the scheme.

�Paul Volcker by his own admission has said he doesn�t understand capital markets,” Dimon told Francis in the Fox Business interview. “He has proven that to me.�

Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.comCheck out the clip, starting at about 1:05 in, courtesy of Fox Biz. The zinger is at around the 2 minute mark.

Dimon also went on to say we won�t destroy the market, it will simply �go overseas.�

There’s no way of knowing what the impact of the ban on proprietary trading will be long-term, so some of this may just be bluster. But a look atbank earnings recently show that the momentum simply isn’t there.

If investment banking revenue is drying up, what�s going to replace it at JPM, Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and other leading financial stocks? Well, Dimon is optimistic that the worst of housing is over. He actually told Francis, �I think we are at the bottom. Housing prices are still going down a little bit. All the lean indicators are good; rental prices are up, mortgages are at all time affordability.�

But investors should take that with a grain of salt. After all, JPM has a lot riding on a housing recovery, so it’s natural for the CEO to put a happy face on the real estate market.

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