NEW YORK (Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase announced plans on Monday to hire bankers and invest up to $10 billion in U.S. companies critical to national security and economic resilience as part of a broader $1.5 trillion pledge.
The 10-year initiative aims to facilitate, finance and invest in industries central to the growth of the U.S. economy, including defense, energy and manufacturing.
Shares of the largest U.S. bank climbed more than 2%.
JPMorgan said it will deploy the $10 billion through direct equity and venture capital investments.
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U.S. President Donald Trump is looking to modernize infrastructure and reduce dependence on foreign supply chains, particularly in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, clean energy and rare earth minerals.
Trump has criticized JPMorgan and its rivals for “debanking” clients – cutting ties with certain customers by closing their accounts or refusing to do business with them – for their political or religious beliefs.
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said the investments were not driven by the Trump administration.
JPMorgan said its new “security and resiliency initiative” would facilitate financing and investment across four strategic sectors: supply chain and manufacturing; defense and aerospace; energy independence; and frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing.
The firm said it had already planned to facilitate and finance about $1 trillion over the next decade to support clients in these industries, according to previously undisclosed internal figures, but it would increase the size by 50%.
Some analysts disagreed.
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The U.S. government is pursuing deals across up to 30 industries, involving dozens of companies deemed critical to national or economic security, Reuters reported this month.
JPMorgan, which helped put together the government’s deal with U.S. rare earths mining company MP Materials, said in a recent company podcast that the bank was working with the Trump administration to explore more such opportunities.
“America needs more speed and investment,” he said.
FOUR KEY INVESTMENT AREAS
The four key investment areas identified by the firm have been divided into 27 sub-sectors ranging from shipbuilding and nuclear energy to nanomaterials and secure communications. They will include middle-market companies as well as large corporate clients, it added.
The bank plans to establish an external advisory council composed of public- and private-sector leaders, in addition to hiring more bankers and investment professionals.
Dimon said he intends to hire a top-notch investment team quickly, without specifying how many bankers he planned to add.
