Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co., spoke in his annual letter to shareholders Wednesday morning about inequality, racism and corporate social responsibility.
Hours later, JPMorgan’s board, which he chairs, urged shareholders to vote against a proposal for a racial equity audit.
JPMorgan Chase JPM,
is one of the country’s few largest banks urged to conduct racial equity audits to investigate how their practices and policies affect non-white customers and communities of color in the wake of the Black Lives Matter- protests last year.
Dimon, in particular, went further than other CEOs by going to a Chase branch in New York last year and taking a knee to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Additionally, in a letter to shareholders released Wednesday morning, Dimon spoke of the importance of careful planning, analysis and reporting on the economic and racial crises facing the United States.
See: US Economy Thrives In 2023 But Inequality Needs To Be Addressed: Jamie Dimon In His Latest Letter To JPMorgan Shareholders
He also mentioned the importance of transparency: “Unlike many companies that just sell you a product if you can afford it, banks must necessarily reject customers or enforce rules that a customer may not like (for example, covenants). This makes open and transparent handling even more important. “
When the bank published its proxy on Wednesday afternoon, JPMorgan pushed for a “no” vote on a shareholder resolution that would ensure transparency on racial equality, saying it is already addressing these issues. In its defense, the company cited a $ 30 billion commitment over five years to “close the race-wealth divide, support workers and break down barriers of systemic racism,” and said it has “extensive involvement in stakeholders affected by our activities ”, as well as a system to diversify the workforce.
In its shareholder proposal, CtW Investment Group pointed to JPMorgan’s “conflicting history” in tackling racial injustice. Among other things, the group cited the bank’s federal lawsuit regarding $ 55 million mortgage discrimination; the closure of its branches in predominantly black communities; and lawsuits for discrimination against its black and Hispanic employees.
See: Companies declared last year that ‘black lives matter’, and now they are being asked to prove it
JPMorgan joins Citigroup Inc. C,
Wells Fargo & Co. WFC,
Bank of America Corp. BAC,
and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS,
by asking shareholders to reject the racial equity audits. Morgan Stanley MS,
dealing with a similar proposal recently reached an agreement with CtW. According to CtW, which agreed to withdraw its proposal, Morgan Stanley pledged to conduct an internal review of its workforce and leadership by next year’s annual meeting and to further discuss its practices affecting the equity of others. non-white stakeholders.
A JPMorgan spokesman declined to comment on Wednesday evening.