JPMorgan says CEO transition top priority, cites Piepszak, Lake as potential Dimon successors

JPMorgan says CEO transition is a top priority, cites potential Dimon successors

Eighteen years after Jamie Dimon went to the helm of affairs at JPMorgan Chase, its board of directors stated that a smooth change in the corner office is the top objective of the company.

Succession is in the air all around Wall Street. After leading Morgan Stanley for 14 years, James Gorman was replaced by Ted Pick as the CEO at the beginning of this year. Last October saw the arrival of Peter Orszag at Lazard. Other banks have also moved executives across departments to provide them with a more comprehensive experience.

In a proxy statement, the board stated that it is "spending significant time on developing operating committee members who are well-known to shareholders as strong potential CEO candidates" for the medium term.

Contenders for the top job include Jennifer Piepszak and Troy Rohrbaugh, recently appointed co-CEOs of JPMorgan's expanded commercial and investment bank, Marianne Lake, CEO of consumer and community banking, and Mary Erdoes, CEO of asset and wealth management wing.

The company has been gradually building up more dialogue around succession since Dimon's emergency surgery in March 2020, said Chris Marinac, director of research at financial advisor Janney Montgomery Scott.

"However, I don't think that this means that Dimon is leaving tomorrow, he could be here for a few more years," Marinac said.

As he did in 2020 when Dimon underwent urgent heart surgery, President and Chief Operating Officer Daniel Pinto remained on the list of executives qualified to become the CEO in the near future.

"Should the need arise in the near term, we view Pinto as a key executive who is immediately ready to fulfill the responsibilities of the CEO," the statement said.

Dimon praised the American leadership and economic might to shareholders in his annual letter to shareholders on April 8, citing "liberty and justice for all".

Several finance CEOs have had their names proposed for prominent economic positions in government, including Dimon, who assumed leadership in 2006.

According to a Wall Street Journal article published last week, key Wall Street CEOs, including Dimon, were being considered by associates of former US president Donald Trump for the position of Treasury secretary.

In 2023, Dimon received a pay increase of around 4.3 percent, reaching $36 million. While Erdoes received $27 million in compensation, Pinto received $30 million in total. Piepszak and Lake each earned $18.5 million in 2023, while Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum earned $15 million.

The lender also announced that two directors on its board - Timothy Flynn and Michael Neal - have decided to retire when their terms expire on the eve of its 2024 annual meeting of shareholders in May.

JPMorgan's shares were marginally higher in premarket trading. It is set to report first-quarter results on April 12.

Brian Mulberry, a client portfolio manager at Zacks Investment Management, predicted Dimon would leave within five years. Mulberry holds stock in JPMorgan and other large banks.

(With inputs from Reuters)