JPMorgan's (JPM) Next Move to Boost Profits
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Amid recent Wall Street protests and hints of future increased taxes, J.P. Morgan might begin to push harder to land bigger fish.
Reports Friday suggest J.P. Morgan's (NYSE: JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon could be looking to expand the bank's wealth management arm, aiming for pre-tax profits to bolster to $1 billion or more annually.
Barry Sommers, who was named to lead J.P. Morgan's retail affluent and investment services last July, said it's one of Jamie Dimon's "most important goals."
Sommers, speaking with the NY Post, said Dimon's plan includes the hiring of thousands of wealth managers and support staff over the next several years. He said J.P. Morgan plans to have a presence in more than 250 locations by the end of 2011, 750 in 2012, and 1,000 locations through 2013.
Many of the new locations will be housed in existing ATM branches, but will have dedicated offices. Likely the offices will smell of rich mahogany and will appeal to higher-net-worth clients.
Sources also said that Dimon played with the idea of simply acquiring a wealth manager, but opted to build the arm organically. The plan calls to tap existing clientele as well as aim to steal clients from competitors.
According to the NY Post, J.P. Morgan has said about 66 percent of high-net-worth customers visit a branch each quarter. The other 33 percent simply have Jeeves do it.
Of course, aiming for the most wealthy clients isn't a new venture; banks have had high-net-worth wealth divisions for years. But with Basel III set to crimp margins, banks have been scrambling to improve profits. J.P. Morgan competitor Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), for example, announced it will begin charging a $5 monthly fee for debit-card use.
J.P. Morgan shares are slightly lower Friday morning.
Reports Friday suggest J.P. Morgan's (NYSE: JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon could be looking to expand the bank's wealth management arm, aiming for pre-tax profits to bolster to $1 billion or more annually.
Barry Sommers, who was named to lead J.P. Morgan's retail affluent and investment services last July, said it's one of Jamie Dimon's "most important goals."
Sommers, speaking with the NY Post, said Dimon's plan includes the hiring of thousands of wealth managers and support staff over the next several years. He said J.P. Morgan plans to have a presence in more than 250 locations by the end of 2011, 750 in 2012, and 1,000 locations through 2013.
Many of the new locations will be housed in existing ATM branches, but will have dedicated offices. Likely the offices will smell of rich mahogany and will appeal to higher-net-worth clients.
Sources also said that Dimon played with the idea of simply acquiring a wealth manager, but opted to build the arm organically. The plan calls to tap existing clientele as well as aim to steal clients from competitors.
According to the NY Post, J.P. Morgan has said about 66 percent of high-net-worth customers visit a branch each quarter. The other 33 percent simply have Jeeves do it.
Of course, aiming for the most wealthy clients isn't a new venture; banks have had high-net-worth wealth divisions for years. But with Basel III set to crimp margins, banks have been scrambling to improve profits. J.P. Morgan competitor Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), for example, announced it will begin charging a $5 monthly fee for debit-card use.
J.P. Morgan shares are slightly lower Friday morning.
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