Sharing his remarks Wednesday on Capitol Hill, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon criticized Cryptocurrency.
The head of the largest U.S. bank under questionaing from Sen, Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., assets during Senate Banking Committee hearing, said, “I’ve always been deeply opposed to crypto, bitcoin, etc.,”
“The only true use case for it is criminals, drug traffickers … money laundering, tax avoidance,” said Dimon
“If I was the government, I’d close it down,” Dimon added.
It is worth noting that Dimon’s bank JPMorgan itself is heavily involved in blockchain, the enabling technology for the $1.6 trillion industry.
In previous statements, Dimon has called bitcoin “a hyped-up fraud,” a comment he later walked back. He had also likened it to a “pet rock.”
Under further questioning from Warren, Dimon and several other CEOs of large banks brought before the committee as part of a routine hearing on the industry, agreed that crypto companies should face the same anti-money-laundering regulations as the major financial institutions.
The topic marked a rare note of unity between the banking leaders and Warren, usually a harsh critic of the industry.
“When it comes to banking policy, I am not usually holding hands with the CEOs of multibillion-dollar banks, but this is a matter of national security. Terrorists, drug traffickers and rogue nations should be barred from using crypto for their dangerous activities. It is time for Congress to act,” said Warren
