JPMorgan Chase announced today $2.1 billion earnings for the first quarter, a better-than-expected number, and CEO Jamie Dimon said they are ready to repay the government's $25 billion infusion of cash.
Dimon told analysts this morning in a conference call that the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program funds were a "scarlett letter" and no bank competitor, he said, "should be able to pay it back faster than we do."
"We can pay it back tomorrow. We have the money," Dimon said.
During the call, Dimon stayed true to his pull-no-punches reputation, reiterating his disdain for the federal assistance he's said his bank was forced to take last year as the government sought to shore up the country's ailing banking system and JPMorgan's competitors.
"We would like to pay it back as soon as prudent," Dimon said, adding that the bank was awaiting government guidance on when to repay the funds. He also said that JPMorgan would not participate in the Treasury Department's Public Private Investment Partnership, which was designed to relieve banks of their troubled assets.
JPMorgan's balance sheet, Dimon said, is "a fortress."
As JPMorgan has continued to maneuver around some of the worst of the financial crisis, all eyes have been on Dimon, the bank's straight-shooting, fast-talking CEO. - ABC News Story
A current report showed lending was still pretty much at a stand still with many Banks even after the infusion of Cash from the Governement. This gives you a hint as to why that might be. It is a Scarlet Letter. The Government has changed the rules so many times on the conditions of taking the money, and with the way Obama handled the CEO of GM, is it any wonder that leaders of other Companies that are heavily financed by the Government are funneling all the funds they can to paying back the money and getting out from under Obama Rule?
No comments:
Post a Comment