10 Things You Didn’t Know about Jamie Dimon

Jamie Dimon is an American business executive who celebrates his birthday on 13th March. He is the CEO (Chief Executive Officer), chairman and president of JPMorgan Chase. His name has appeared on the list of the top a hundred most influential people in the world by Time Magazine in 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2011.

Jamie has also worked for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as a member of the board of directors. He is among the few chief executives who work in banks to become a billionaire. Some details many may not know about the savvy businessman include:

He was once too Broke to Afford a Date

It is hard to believe the man who is now a billionaire could at one time not afford to take his girlfriend for a decent date because he did not have the money. In fact, Judy Kent his wife who was also Dimon’s classmate in Harvard volunteered to pay for their first date. On their 15th anniversary, however, he gifted her a stock certificate handing over 1/3rd of his net worth.

Jamie was already doing Business at the age of Six

His siblings describe him as an extremely confident individual who goes after what he wants. Dimon did not wait to grow up, go to school and then start a business like it is the norm with a majority. His entrepreneurial spirit kicked in early as he was already selling greeting cards at the tender age of six. By the time he turned nine, Jamie had told his dad that he was going to make a fortune as an adult. As a young man, his favorite book to read was “How to Be Rich” by Paul Getty.

Jamie Dimon has a Sharp Memory

It is as though the gentleman has an internal memory card because he remembers almost everything that he reads. Colleagues are normally astonished when they visit Jamie’s office, and they find that he does not have a cluttered desk. His working space features a sign that reads “No Whiners.”

Mondays are his Favorite Days to Ask Questions

Almost all Monday mornings, Dimon arrives in the office with a long list of questions. He prepares them for his subordinates and secures them in his breast pocket. He crosses off the list when he gets the answers he is looking for. He is known to grab people in the hallway and direct them to his office for “interrogations.”

Dimon’s Grandfather changed his Last Name

Jamie’s paternal grandfather Panos Papademetriou changed his last name to Dimon after arriving in New York from Greece in 1921. He apparently has two versions of the story as to why he made a move. The first was because while trying to find employment as a busboy, he found out that many employers did not want to hire Greeks. The other version was that he fell in love with a French girl.

He Believes Bitcoin is a Fraud

Jamie Dimon does not have anything good to say about the digital currency. He says that people who are buying it are “stupid” and that later on, they will pay the price. The banking executive reported that the blockchain technology behind the cryptocurrency was valid.

He has Transformed the Financial Industry

The grandson and son of stockbrokers has been a significant force in the financial industry especially after teaming up with Sandy Weil at American Express. As the CEO of JPMorgan Chase for a decade, the outspoken captain of the field has delivered the highest total returns than major American Banks only second to Wells Fargo.

Jamie Wants People not to be too Hard on Businesses that make Mistakes

As a man who has come under intense fire because his firm once lost $2 billion because of an egregious and terrible mistake, Dimon says that entities should not be shot each time they make a mistake. It is because he believes that business people can right their wrongdoing and end up soaring higher than before.

He is very Vocal about Fintech

Jamie often visits a number of startups in Silicon Valley. He also spends time hitting podcast circuits to talk about fintech dedicating a lot of ink in his company’s investor communications every year to talk about the future of finance. Jamie is always happy to discuss the topic openly criticizing and encouraging the industry. He affirms that fintech is not really a new thing because all through his banking career, technology has always played a significant role in reducing costs, developing fresh products, and offering better consumer experience.

Jamie Dimon had Throat Cancer

The father of three daughters Kara, Julia, and Laura Leigh was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. He had to go through chemotherapy and radiation for eight weeks that ended in September 2014.