JPMorgan Chase Allows Customers to Buy Bitcoin-Related Assets

JPMorgan Chase, led by CEO Jamie Dimon, allows customers to buy bitcoin-related assets through JPMorgan accounts.

In a surprising move, JPMorgan Chase, one of the largest financial institutions in the U.S., will allow customers to buy bitcoin-related assets through its products.

The decision was made by none other than JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who is still known for his negative stance on bitcoin. But it seems that the bank giant can’t ignore the growing market for such assets any longer.

According to Bloomberg and other foreign media on the 20th, CEO Dimon recently announced the plan at JPMorgan Investor Day.

At the investor day, JPMorgan said it would not provide bitcoin custodian services directly, and would expand trading and investing services for customers in private markets, such as hedge funds and alternative credit.

Until now, JPMorgan has supported trading in virtual asset futures-based products. However, it did not allow direct holding of bitcoin or trading of spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

On the other hand, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan’s leading rival, has already allowed asset managers to advise customers to buy bitcoin spot ETFs since August last year.

However, regarding the new measure to allow bitcoin trading, the report stated that it is part of a broader strategy to expand wealth management services.

However, apart from JPMorgan’s policy, CEO Dimon highlighted that he still has a negative perception of bitcoin.

“Just as we respect the right to smoke without recommending smoking, we also respect the right to purchase bitcoin. But we don’t advise people to smoke, and we also advise people not to buy bitcoin,” CEO Dimon stated.

In the meantime, CEO Dimon has been pouring out negative comments about bitcoin.

“(Bitcoin) is used for crime, drug smuggling, money laundering, etc. If I were the government, I would have banned it,” he said at a 2023 U.S. Senate hearing.

However, despite the CEO’s negative view, JPMorgan has been expanding its footprint in cryptocurrencies.

Earlier this year, JPMorgan began offering a service that allows institutional investors to trade bitcoin in a private capacity.

Moreover, the investment bank has also been investing in blockchain startups and technologies.

As the crypto market continues to grow and institutional interest increases, it will be interesting to see what other moves JPMorgan makes in the coming months and years.

Meanwhile, bitcoin has risen to near its highest price ever.

It rebounded again after falling to the mid-$70,000 range in April, when it hit an all-time high at the beginning of the year and concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policy reached a peak.

According to CoinMarketCap, bitcoin is trading at $105,640.90 as of 1:30 p.m., up 2.31% from 24 hours ago. Bitcoin’s record high was $106,814.18 on the day, about 2.15% of the all-time high.