JPMorgan Chase & Co. Q4 Earnings Call Highlights

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) used its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call to outline results that reflected stronger year-over-year revenue growth, continued consumer resilience, and an expense outlook that management said is tied to investment priorities and a more competitive environment. Executives also addressed the impact of a previously disclosed reserve build tied to the firm’s forward purchase commitment for the Apple Card portfolio and discussed regulatory and policy topics ranging from stablecoins to potential caps on credit card APRs.

Quarterly and full-year results

Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum said the firm reported fourth-quarter net income of $13 billion and earnings per share of $4.63, with return on tangible common equity (ROTCE) of 18%. Revenue totaled $46.8 billion, up 7% year over year, which Barnum attributed to higher markets revenue, higher asset management fees, and auto lease income.

The quarter included “the previously announced reserve build of $2.2 billion in CCB related to the forward purchase commitment of the Apple Card portfolio,” Barnum said.

Expenses were $24 billion, up 5% year over year, driven mainly by higher volume- and revenue-related costs and compensation growth, including front-office hiring. Barnum noted these increases were partially offset by the release of an FDIC special assessment accrual.

For the full year, Barnum said that excluding certain significant items listed in a footnote, JPMorgan reported net income of $57.5 billion, EPS of $20.18, revenue of $185 billion, and ROTCE of 20%.

Capital and Apple Card impact

JPMorgan ended the quarter with a standardized CET1 ratio of 14.5%, down 30 basis points sequentially. Barnum said net income was more than offset by capital distributions and higher risk-weighted assets (RWA). The increase in standardized RWA was driven by lending growth across wholesale and retail, including the Apple Card purchase commitment.

Barnum said the Apple Card commitment contributed about $23 billion of standardized RWA. On an advanced basis, he said the Apple Card transaction’s RWA contribution was about $110 billion, based on the expected drawn balances and undrawn lines at closing. He added that the elevated advanced RWA level is expected to be temporary and “reduce to approximately $30 billion in the near term.”

Business performance: consumer, markets, and asset management

In Consumer & Community Banking (CCB), Barnum reported net income of $3.6 billion, or $5.3 billion excluding the Apple Card reserve build. Revenue of $19.4 billion was up 6% year over year, driven by higher net interest income (NII) from higher revolving balances in card and a higher deposit margin in banking and wealth management.

Management emphasized ongoing consumer strength. Barnum said consumers and small businesses “remain resilient,” and that the firm was not currently seeing deterioration despite weak consumer sentiment. Debit and credit sales volume was up 7% year over year across income groups. For the full year, he highlighted 1.7 million net new checking accounts and 10.4 million new card accounts, along with record households in wealth management across digital and advised channels.

In the Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB), Barnum reported net income of $7.3 billion and revenue of $19.4 billion, up 10% year over year. The increase was driven by markets, payments, and securities services. Investment banking fees were down 5% year over year due to a strong prior-year comparison and “the timing of some deals that were pushed to 2026.” Fixed income markets revenue rose 7%, while equities revenue increased 40%, with Barnum pointing to robust performance “particularly in prime.”

In Asset & Wealth Management (AWM), net income was $1.8 billion with a 38% pre-tax margin. Revenue increased 13% year over year to $6.5 billion, driven by higher management fees on higher average market levels and strong net inflows, plus higher performance fees. Barnum said long-term net inflows were $52 billion in the quarter and $209 billion for the year. Liquidity saw $105 billion of net inflows in the quarter and $183 billion for the year, and the firm recorded client asset net inflows of $553 billion for the year.

2026 outlook: NII, expenses, and credit

For 2026, Barnum reiterated guidance for NII ex-Markets of about $95 billion and total NII of about $103 billion. The outlook follows the forward curve, which Barnum said currently assumes two rate cuts. He said those cuts are expected to reduce funding costs, lifting Markets NII to about $8 billion, which he said should be “primarily offset in NIR.”

On expenses, management guided to 2026 adjusted expense of about $105 billion. Barnum said the firm is making investments aligned with “the greatest opportunities across our businesses,” while warning that the operating environment is becoming “more competitive,” requiring investment against both traditional and non-traditional competitors.

During Q&A, CEO Jamie Dimon and Barnum declined to provide line-item detail that could be competitively sensitive, but emphasized that investments include technology, payments, branches, personalization and customer experience, and AI. Dimon said JPMorgan is “not going to try to meet some expense target” at the risk of being left behind competitively. Barnum also mentioned a “catch-up” in workplace space renovations after headcount growth, though Dimon said real estate is “a very small number” as an expense driver.

On credit, Barnum said the firm expects the 2026 card net charge-off rate to be approximately 3.4%, citing favorable delinquency trends and consumer resilience. He also said wholesale credit trends were “nothing that concerning,” describing downgrades slightly exceeding upgrades and small parameter updates that increased assumed loss given default in wholesale lending.

Key policy and strategy themes: stablecoins, APR caps, NBFI lending

Executives addressed stablecoin legislation and its potential effect on deposits. Barnum said the firm has been active in blockchain technology, referencing the Kinexus offering and the launch of a tokenized money market fund. He also noted that JPMorgan has an agreement with Coinbase that will enable customers to buy crypto within the CCB ecosystem.

On stablecoins and regulation, Barnum said the firm’s advocacy is focused on preventing “the creation of a parallel banking system” that functions like banking, including “something that looks a lot like a deposit that pays interest,” but without prudential safeguards.

Management also discussed the possibility of credit card APR caps. Barnum framed potential price controls as likely to reduce access to credit broadly, especially for lower-FICO borrowers, and said it would be “bad for us” given cards are a significant business. Dimon added that the impact would vary by co-brand and customer mix, and said an undifferentiated cap “would be very dramatic.”

On the Apple Card partnership specifically, Barnum described the transaction as “economically compelling” and characterized it as a “win-win-win.” Management said the integration will take two years because the current Apple Card offering uses a purpose-built tech stack integrated into iOS, requiring JPMorgan to rebuild and embed those capabilities into its systems.

Finally, Barnum provided additional detail on non-bank financial institution (NBFI) lending. Under the firm’s narrower internal definition—focused on exposure collateralized by loans NBFIs make to end borrowers—JPMorgan reported about $160 billion of exposure as of the fourth quarter. Barnum said the loss history since 2018 has included only one charge-off, which was related to apparent fraud, but added the firm remains mindful of risks given growth and novel elements in parts of the activity.

About JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)

JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE: JPM) is a diversified global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. The company provides a wide range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, small businesses, corporations, governments and institutional investors worldwide. Its operations span retail banking, commercial lending, investment banking, asset management, payments and card services, and treasury and securities services.

The firm’s principal business activities are organized across several core lines: Consumer & Community Banking, which offers deposit accounts, mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and branch and digital banking under the Chase brand; Corporate & Investment Banking, which provides capital markets, advisory, underwriting, trading and risk management services; Commercial Banking, delivering lending, treasury and capital solutions to middle-market and corporate clients; and Asset & Wealth Management, which offers investment management, private banking and retirement services to institutions and high-net-worth individuals.