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JPMorgan Chase is taking a page from the digital disruptors.
The biggest U.S. bank by assets said Wednesday it is planning to expand its retail presence to the U.K. for the first time – but instead of traditional brick and mortar branches, it is only offering services via mobile app.
JPMorgan’s first product, which is being tested internally ahead of its release later this year, will be a checking account, the bank said in a statement. That will be followed by a “range of products” likely to include credit cards and home loans, according to a person with knowledge of the plans.
The project will provide a case study into whether JPMorgan can expand its retail bank in other countries around the world, according to this person.
In the U.S., JPMorgan and other big lenders are limited by rules prohibiting lenders from acquiring other banks after gaining 10% of the country’s deposits. The project could also ultimately inform how it manages its network of 4,908 retail branches in the U.S., the person said.
“We are bringing Chase to the U.K. because we want to provide customers with a new banking choice – one that will enable them to benefit from a simple and exceptional banking experience, built on the significant capabilities of JPMorgan Chase,” said Gordon Smith, who runs JPMorgan’s retail banking division.
“The U.K. has a vibrant and highly competitive consumer banking marketplace, which is why we’ve designed the bank from scratch to specifically meet the needs of customers here,” he said.
In recent years, reports that JPMorgan was working on a secretive project in the U.K. emerged after the bank listed job openings there for technical positions. In 2019, TechCrunch reported that the bank was in the early stages of creating a retail digital bank in the U.K. after shuttering a similar offering in the U.S. called Finn. Bloomberg first reported on the official rollout of the U.K. product.
