Exclusive: Jamie Dimon's plan to rescue the American Dream
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Capitalism has left some people behind, JPMorgan Chase chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon said on "The Axios Show" — and he wants his bank to help create economic opportunities for as many of them as possible.
The big picture: "I've been speaking about the frame of the American Dream for years. And I think you have to acknowledge that there's a flaw," especially for lower-income Americans, Dimon told Axios CEO Jim VandeHei.
- "The Axios Show" is our interview series featuring newsmakers shaping politics, business, tech, and culture.
Driving the news: JPM on Tuesday launches an ambitious multi-year program called the American Dream Initiative. The plan is to invest money and resources into small businesses, affordable housing and job training across the country.
- The program aims to support small businesses by unlocking more access to capital, coaching, and tools for tasks like payroll and invoicing.
Why it matters: Dimon is betting that juicing economic opportunity at the local level is not just good for business, but for the U.S. as a whole.
- "America's military strength is also predicated on economic strength," he said. "And that economic strength is somewhat predicated on life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — and equal opportunity. So if you want to have an equal opportunity country, you need to do some of these things to give people more opportunity."
The numbers behind JPMorgan's plan:
- 🏦 $80 billion in planned small business lending over the next decade.
- 👩🏫 115,000 small business owners to be mentored across 80+ cities by 2030.
- 💼 1,000 additional small business bankers to be hired across 5,000 branches.
- 📈 10 million small business clients, up from the current 7 million.
The effort builds on the firm's existing $1.5 trillion Security & Resiliency Initiative, which targets manufacturing, energy and infrastructure.
What's next: JPM says it will announce additional local investments, partnerships and policy initiatives in the months ahead.
