Chairman & CEO Letter to Shareholders

[Excerpt from Annual Letter to Shareholders, released 11:30am, EDT, 4/4/17]

I begin this letter with a sense of gratitude and pride about JPMorgan Chase that has only grown stronger over the course of the last decade. Ours is an exceptional company with an extraordinary heritage and a promising future.

Throughout a period of profound political and economic change around the world, our company has been steadfast in our dedication to the clients, communities and countries we serve while earning a fair return for our shareholders.

2016 was another breakthrough year for our company… In this letter, I discuss issues which describe many of our successes and opportunities, as well as our challenges and responses. Like last year’s letter, we have organized much of the content around some of the key questions we have received from shareholders and other interested parties, including:

 I. The JPMorgan Chase franchise

We take an in-depth look at our four major business franchises to see why they’re strong and market leading. Among other subjects, we look at why we’re optimistic about our future growth opportunities, why we’re excited about our technology and fintech initiatives, and why we’re so proud of JPMorgan Chase. We also assess our biggest geopolitical risks.

II. Regulatory reform

We believe changes can and should be made that preserve the safety and soundness of the financial system — changes that will lead to a more healthy and vibrant economy for the benefit of all. Not only do we talk about the strength and safety of the financial system, but also how we can reduce complexity and create a more coherent regulatory system. We also explore such topics as how and why capital rules should be changed and how we can harmonize regulations across the globe.

III. Public policy

In this section, we assess our strengths given the fact that the United States of America is truly an exceptional country. It’s clear, though, that something is wrong — and is holding us back. We focus on how we can start investing in the people of our country through work skills training and an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit to help them share in the opportunities and rewards of our economy. We also examine what our country should be doing to invest in our infrastructure. In addition, how the U.S. legal and regulatory system should be reformed to incentivize investment and job creation is another one of the questions we explore. We end that section with a call for strong collaboration between business and government to allow us to move forward toward a prosperous future for all.

Letter continued here...