JP Morgan CEO calls cryptocurrency a ‘decentralized Ponzi scheme’

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said he was “extremely skeptical” of “crypto-tokens called Bitcoin-like currencies” while testifying before U.S. lawmakers. and called them “decentralized Ponzi schemes”.

Dimon was asked during an oversight hearing held by the House Financial Services Committee on Sept. 21 as to why it is hampering activity in the cryptocurrency space.

Dimon emphasized that he sees value in blockchain, decentralized finance (DeFi), ledgers, smart contracts, and “tokens that do things,” but then lashed out at crypto tokens identified as currencies. .

Asked for his thoughts on the US stablecoin bill, Dimon said there is nothing wrong with a properly regulated stablecoin and that regulation should be similar to what money market funds are subject to. said he was thinking.

Dimon has once described Bitcoin as a “scam” and has repeatedly said in the past that he has no interest in helping the sector on a personal level. He has occasionally softened his stance on cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that they could be useful for important use cases such as cross-border payments.

Despite Dimon’s views on the cryptocurrency space, JP Morgan is venturing into the blockchain technology arena. The financial giant launched his own stablecoin, JPM Coin, in October 2020. It is the first cryptocurrency backed by a US bank with the aim of improving payment efficiency.

A week after issuing the coin, the bank launched a new business unit dedicated to blockchain technology called Onyx. Since then, the Onyx platform has been used by a large institutional client for his 24/7 global payments.

JP Morgan also became the first major bank in the Metaverse after opening a virtual lounge in Decentraland, a blockchain-based world, in February. The move followed a report released by the company that called the Metaverse his trillion dollar opportunity.

JP Morgan has been hiring new staff to enter the blockchain and cryptocurrency space, most recently on Sept. 9, when it announced the hiring of former Microsoft executive Tahreem Kamptom as a senior executive in payments. Announced. Kamptom has shown in his LinkedIn bio that he has worked on crypto-related payment methods, so he is expected to help JP his Morgan explore blockchain technology.

Related: ‘Most of cryptocurrency is still junk’ and lacks use cases — JP Morgan’s Blockchain Head

During the hearing, lawmakers also asked other U.S. bank CEOs if they have plans to fund cryptocurrency mining. Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan, and Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf are all suggested that it did not intend to do so.