JPMorgan CEO James Dimon Talked About Cryptocurrencies Again: “I Would Ban It If It Were Me”

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon voiced his strong opposition to cryptocurrencies at a recent hearing of the Senate Banking Committee, suggesting they should be banned.

Dimon, who heads the largest US bank by assets, was questioned by Senator Elizabeth Warren during the hearing. “I've always been vehemently opposed to cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and things like that. The only real use for it is criminals, drug traffickers… money laundering, tax avoidance,” Dimon said. He continued: “If I were the government, I would close them down.”

These comments are not Dimon's first criticism of cryptocurrencies. Despite his bank's significant involvement in blockchain, the technology that underpins the $1.6 trillion industry, Dimon had previously referred to Bitcoin as an “overrated fraud” and later retracted that statement. He also compared Bitcoin to “pet stones”, a popular fraud element of the period.

When questioned further by Warren, Dimon, along with several other major bank CEOs who attended the routine industry hearing, argued that crypto companies should be subject to the same anti-money laundering regulations as major financial institutions.

*This is not investment advice.