Never one to dodge a question Jamie Dimon has waded into the current cryptocurrency controversy with some blunt words.
Speaking at an investor conference the J.P. Morgan chief said If a J.P. Morgan trader began trading in bitcoin, «I’d fire them in a second. For two reasons: It’s against our rules, and they’re stupid. And both are dangerous.»
A rash of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) have brought digital currencies into the news recently. As cryptocurrency prices have soared regulators in several jurisdictions have grown so concerned they have issued missives warning investors to be cautious.
Drastic Measures
News firm «Bloomberg» reported that Dimon did not pull his punches when asked for his opinion. Dimon said he’s skeptical authorities will allow a currency to exist without state oversight, especially if something goes wrong. «Someone’s going to get killed and then the government’s going to come down,» he said. «You just saw in China, governments like to control their money supply.»
The control referred to the recent action from The People's Bank of China which in one swipe banned ICOs and declared them illegal and a threat to financial stability. Dimon differentiated between the bitcoin currency and the underlying blockchain technology, which he said can be useful. Still, he said banks’ application of blockchain «won’t be overnight.»
