Jamie Dimon Mocks Crypto, Saying It's 'pet Rock'

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, argues that the “right” fiscal policies will shape America’s fate over the next 100 years.

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, expressed his dislike for cryptocurrencies on Thursday.

Bitcoin itself, Dimon told CNBC’s Squawk Box, is a “hyped scam.” He also called it a “pet rock” during the interview.

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When asked about BlackRock and other investment firms investing in blockchain, he clarified, “this is different.”

If we want to solve climate change, said JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, it's not anti-climate [change] for America to extract oil and gas.

In a recent client meeting, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon insisted that increasing natural gas production in the United States does not run counter to the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Portal/Jeenah Moon/File Photo / Portal Photos (Portal/Jeenah Moon/File Photo / Portal Photos / Portal Photos)

“Blockchain is a technology ledger system that we use to move information,” he explained. “We used it to do overnight repo, intraday repo. We used it to move money.”

Dimon said blockchain is a “technology ledger that we believe will be deployable.”

He was “not at all surprised” by what happened to the now-collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, he also told CNBC.

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FTX, which was once valued at $32 billion, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried resigned from his position as CEO the same day the IPO was filed and has since faced multiple criminal charges from the Southern District of New York and the Securities and Exchange Commission. He has pleaded not guilty to them.

An FTX logo and a depiction of cryptocurrencies can be seen through broken glass in this December 13, 2022 illustration. Portal/Dado Ruvic/Illustration (Portal / Portal Photos)

“I’ve called it a decentralized Ponzi scheme,” Dimon said of FTX. “The hype around this thing was extraordinary.”

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He said regulators “should have stopped this a long time ago,” noting that people “have lost billions of dollars.”

A depiction of cryptocurrencies in this illustration dated January 24, 2022. (Portal/Dado Ruvic/Illustration / Portal)

“Crypto itself doesn’t do anything,” he repeated as well. “It’s a pet rock.”