After hinting in an interview earlier this year that he might run for office, followed by calls from financiers that he should run for president, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on Tuesday denied any ambition for the top political job.
“I’ve never really believed I’m suited for it,” the country’s most powerful banker said in a wide-ranging sit down interview with The Economist.
Over the course of a 45-minute interview with editor Zanny Minton Beddoes, Dimon talked about the American economy, inflation, the war in Ukraine, food scarcity and public policy before touching on his own political ambition, or lack thereof.
“If you’re going to do that, you should practice. You don’t just say ‘Oh I’m going to run for office,'” Dimon said. “There may be common skills between a CEO in terms of administration, management, leadership, but there’s also non common ones. You’re dealing with a whole bunch of different issues.”
He went on to say that with the exception of Donald Trump, who had never previously held elected office before winning the presidency, a candidate should probably have some experience. “Just look at history,” he said. “It’s almost impossible.”
Rumors of a potential presidential run for Dimon, 67, began circulating in May when the CEO told Bloomberg: “I love my country, and maybe one day I’ll serve my country in one capacity or another.” Billionaire hedge funder and activist investor Bill Ackman then fueled the rumor mill by eagerly throwing his support behind Dimon’s theoretical presidential candidacy.
JPMorgan Chase said last month that Dimon has no plans to run for office. But the banking chief reiterated in Tuesday’s interview that he’d still be open to serving his country, perhaps with an administrative appointment.
“Maybe one day [serving in an administration] will be in the cards, but it’s not in the cards right away. You know, I love my country—to me, my family comes first, but my country is right next, and JPMorgan is down here.”
Elected office aside, when it comes to leadership, Dimon also shared some of the bigger lessons from running a major bank, and critical qualities he’s learned are necessary in a leader.
“If you’re not curious, you’re not humble. If you think you know the answers, you’re not being clear,” he said, adding that caring about your team was “maybe more important than anything.”
As for his own biggest shortcoming as a leader? It was not showing enough gratitude.
“I was afraid because as an investment banker that if I showed gratitude, they’d actually ask for more money at the end of the year,” he said. “I’ve gotten much better at gratitude.”
When it comes to his own legacy, Dimon keeps it simple.
“All I ever cared about my legacy is that people say we’re going to miss the son of a b**** and he made the world a better place while I was here.”
