JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon addressed his inequality, racism and corporate responsibility in his annual letter on Wednesday morning.
Hours later, the board of JPMorgan, which chairs it, urged shareholders to vote against a racial equity audit proposal.
JPMorgan Chase JPM,
is one of the few largest banks in the nation urged to conduct racial equity audits to examine how its practices and policies affect clients and non-white communities of color in the wake of black life protests in last year.
Dimon, in particular, went further than other CEOs when he entered a Chase branch in New York last year and grabbed a knee to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. In addition, Dimon spoke about the importance of careful planning, analysis, and information about the economic and racial crises facing the United States in a letter to shareholders published Wednesday morning.
See: US economy will grow by 2023, but inequality needs to be addressed: Jamie Dimon in his latest letter to JPMorgan shareholders
He also mentioned the importance of transparency: “Unlike many companies that will simply sell you a product if you can afford it, banks must necessarily reject customers or enforce rules that a customer may not like (e.g. , pacts) .This makes open and transparent transactions even more important. ”
When the bank released its representative on Wednesday afternoon, however, JPMorgan urged a “no” vote on a shareholders ’resolution guaranteeing transparency of racial equity, saying these issues are already being addressed. In its defense, the company cited a $ 30 billion commitment over five years to “close the racial wealth divide, support employees and break down the barriers of systemic racism” and said it has “an extensive commitment with stakeholders affected by our activities, ”as well as a system to diversify its workforce.
In its shareholder proposal, CtW Investment Group noted JPMorgan’s “conflicting history” for tackling racial injustice. Among other things, the group mentioned the bank’s $ 55 million court settlement related to mortgage discrimination; the closure of its offices in mostly black communities; and lawsuits alleging discrimination against its black and Hispanic employees.
See: Companies declared “Black lives are important” last year and are now being asked to prove it
JPMorgan joins Citigroup Inc. C,
Wells Fargo & Co. WFC,
Bank of America Corp BAC,
and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS,
by asking shareholders to reject racial equity audits. Morgan Stanley MS,
which had faced a similar proposal, recently reached an agreement with CtW. According to CtW, which agreed to withdraw its proposal, Morgan Stanley promised to conduct an internal review of its staff and leadership and talk more about its practices affecting equity for other non-white stakeholders before the meeting. annual of next year.
A JPMorgan spokesman declined to comment Wednesday evening.