Dimon Says SWIFT Sanctions May Bring ‘Unintended Consequences’

(Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said disconnecting Russian banks from the SWIFT messaging system may bring “unintended consequences” that include third parties finding ways around the penalty.

“What countries do you hurt? What people are going to do workarounds?” Dimon said Monday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

The CEO was referring to bad players and others finding workarounds, not his own firm, according to a company spokesperson. Dimon said sanctions, by contrast, are “very targeted, very specific, very clean.”

Lenders have been contending with a rapidly evolving situation as the U.S. and European Union ramp up measures against Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine. Western nations announced Saturday that they agreed to sanction Russia's central bank and exclude some of the nation's banks from the SWIFT messaging system, which is used for trillions of dollars of transactions around the world.

Read a Quicktake about why the SWIFT ban is a potent sanction

JPMorgan was among Wall Street firms that had counseled Washington against kicking Russia off SWIFT, arguing that it could have far-reaching fallout that could hurt the global economy and undermine the purpose of the penalties, Bloomberg reported Friday.

“The banks are talking with the government so everyone understands the issues,” Dimon said.

In the wide-ranging interview, Dimon also said that there was “probably too much fiscal stimulus and quantitative easing,” but the U.S. economy is still strong and the Federal Reserve will meet that with “strength.”

Fed policy makers are expected to start raising interest rates next month to confront the highest inflation in decades. Dimon warned last month that the tightening process won't necessarily be as “sweet and gentle” as some might expect. When asked Monday how many times the central bank might raise rates this year, he said “it could be seven or nine, it could be more, it could be less.”

Also in the interview:

Dimon said he does not think all of the current inflation is temporary, but he does expect part of it will get better over time.
Mergers and acquisitions, which hit a record in 2021, “probably won't like last year but it'll probably be fine,” Dimon said. He added that the market for initial public offerings, by contrast, has been “pretty difficult.”