Long-time Skeptic of Cryptocurrency, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon Announces Bitcoin Purchases for Clients Without Custody Services
According to a report by The Block, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has recently announced that as the world’s largest bank, JPMorgan will allow its clients to purchase Bitcoin, although it will not provide custody services, only listing it on clients’ statements. A person familiar with the bank’s plans revealed that the bank is considering offering Bitcoin ETF services to its clients. So far, JPMorgan’s cryptocurrency investments have primarily been limited to futures-based products rather than direct ownership of Bitcoin.
Has Jamie Dimon Changed His Stance on Cryptocurrency?
This decision marks an important step for the bank in the Web3 space, especially considering Dimon’s long-standing criticisms of the cryptocurrency market. It is also the latest sign of Bitcoin’s accelerated entry into mainstream investment. However, does this represent a shift in Dimon’s viewpoint? Perhaps not; he recently stated during a visit that his personal views on Bitcoin remain unchanged, but that does not mean he would refuse to provide services to clients. Dimon cited, “I think you shouldn’t smoke, but I defend your right to smoke.”
Historically, Jamie Dimon has held a strong critical stance on cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin since 2014, repeatedly voicing concerns about their lack of intrinsic value. Back in 2017, during an interview with CNBC at an institutional investor conference, he called Bitcoin a “fraud” and likened it to “worse than the 17th-century Dutch tulip bubble,” even warning that any JPMorgan employee trading Bitcoin would be “immediately fired” for violating company policy, calling it “stupid and dangerous.” In January 2025, during an interview with CBS News, he reiterated, “Bitcoin itself has no intrinsic value, primarily used for ### trading, money laundering, and ransomware.” He even compared Bitcoin to “useless pet rocks,” bluntly stating that Bitcoin is a “Ponzi scheme,” showing that his negative view on Bitcoin has not changed.
JPMorgan’s Active Engagement in Blockchain and Cryptocurrency
Despite Dimon’s personal reservations about Bitcoin, JPMorgan is at the forefront of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency applications. For example, the bank launched its own digital currency, “JPM Coin,” in 2019, a stablecoin backed by the U.S. dollar, used for instant payment settlements between institutional clients, currently processing daily transaction volumes reaching $1 billion.
Additionally, in 2020, JPMorgan established a blockchain division named “Onyx” (now rebranded as Kinexys), based on the Ethereum network, supporting wholesale payments, peer-to-peer lending, and cross-border transactions, having processed over $700 billion in transactions, with partners including Goldman Sachs, DBS Bank, and BNP Paribas. At the same time, JPMorgan has invested in Bitcoin-related products, such as holding BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF and providing clearing services for CME’s Bitcoin and Ethereum futures and options.
Further Reading: JPMorgan Completes Transactions on Public Blockchain for the First Time, Collaborating with Ondo and Chainlink to Settle Tokenized Assets, Accelerating DeFi Integration
Moreover, it is worth mentioning that according to JPMorgan’s Q1 2025 financial report, as of March this year, the Assets and Wealth Management (AWM) department had an AUM of $4.1 trillion, a 15% increase from the same period in 2024. This figure includes investment assets managed by the department for institutional and individual clients, such as equities, fixed income securities, and alternative investments. Even if JPMorgan clients allocate just 1% of their assets to Bitcoin, it would bring $41 billion in buying power to Bitcoin.
JPMorgan: Bitcoin’s Surge in the Second Half of This Year Will Outpace Gold
Additionally, JPMorgan’s managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou led an analysis team that pointed out in a recent report that the current price trend of gold and Bitcoin exhibits a “zero-sum game” relationship, meaning that one rises at the expense of the other:
“From mid-February to mid-April, the rise in gold came at the expense of Bitcoin; however, the situation reversed in the past three weeks, with Bitcoin’s rise suppressing gold.”
Based on this observation, JPMorgan anticipates that this “zero-sum dynamic” will persist until the second half of 2025, but emphasizes that Bitcoin, due to several favorable factors, has the opportunity to gain relative advantage. The report states:
“Overall, we expect this zero-sum game between gold and Bitcoin to continue into the second half of this year, but we tend to believe that specific catalysts for cryptocurrency will provide Bitcoin with greater upward potential compared to gold.”
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