JPMorgan gives Jamie Dimon special stock option bonus to keep him as CEO for several years

JPMorgan Chase granted Jamie Dimon new stock options as a retention bonus to get the CEO to lead the banking giant for a few more years.

Dimon has been granted 1.5 million stock appreciation rights, a form of option contracts that he can exercise over five years if the stock price rises. JPMorgan stock closed at $ 149.71 on Tuesday after climbing 18% this year following the economic reopening.

“This special award reflects the desire of the board of directors to see Mr. Dimon continue to lead the company for a significant number of years to come,” the bank said in a regulatory filing.

These options would give Dimon a profit of around $ 49 million after a 10-year acquisition schedule, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with it.

“In awarding the special award, the Board of Directors recognized the importance of Mr. Dimon’s continued and long-term management of the business, leadership continuity and succession planning. leadership in a highly competitive landscape for leadership talent, ”the bank said.

Dimon, 65, took over JPMorgan in 2005 and made the New York-based lender America’s largest bank after the financial crisis. For years he had a running joke that he was still five years away from resigning. This coincided with the departure of a few executives who had been seen as potential successors.

In May, the bank appointed Marianne Lake and Jennifer Piepszak to lead the company’s sprawling consumer bank after its longtime director announced his retirement.

Succession talks had resurfaced after Dimon suffered emergency heart surgery last year.

The bank kept Dimon’s annual salary at $ 31.5 million for 2020. The CEO got a 1.6% raise the year before after his bank posted record profits and the company’s shares jumped up.

JPMorgan is coming off a better-than-expected quarter as the bank released funds set aside for loan losses as part of its outlook for the US economy to improve.

– CNBC’s Hugh Son contributed reporting.