We would caution that this was expected, but it appears that Jamie Dimon will keep his dual corporate governance roles as chairman and as chief executive officer of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM). Dimon has been under attack since the London Whale issue of 2012, and this vote came Tuesday at the annual shareholder meeting.
Bloomberg TV reported the news and the New York Times ran something showing that Dimon was expected to hold on to both the CEO and chairman roles around 9:30 a.m. EST. The report is according to two people who have reportedly seen the preliminary vote tallies.
Investors have reason to cheer. Dimon had hinted that he might leave the bank if he was stripped of either title, and one report showed a $20 billion risk in shareholder value. That is roughly 10% of the market cap.
What investors need to focus on ahead is that there is no clear succession plan at J.P. Morgan. There have been many departures of late, some voluntary and some mandatory, in the aftermath of the London Whale trading loss scandal and under more regulatory scrutiny.
Apparently the message is out that Dimon is still the best banking CEO, because J.P. Morgan holders have now seen shares hit a post-recession high of $53.48 on Tuesday, and shares are currently up 1.9% at $53.28.
Be advised that a formal vote outcome may not be known until later today.
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