JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, often called as the ‘white knight of Wall Street’, has revealed that he was close to taking a role at Amazon when he left the Citigroup during the early phase in his career.
Dimon began his journey with American Express and later moved to Commercial Credit as CFO. After Commercial Credit acquired The Travelers Corporation, Dimon went on to serve as COO of Travelers subsidiary, Smith Barney, according to Fortune.
He became co-CEO when Smith Barney was merged with the Salomon Brothers in 1997. A year after that, Dimon got the job of Citigroup president and two years later he joined Bank One as its chairman and CEO. Thereafter, he moved up the ranks at JPMorgan when the company got acquired in 2004.
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At that time, Dimon decided to "take the summer off, take the kids around the world and start really thinking about September”.
However, he shared that he did take phone calls and heard every one "respectfully, some you could call almost insulting what they were offering me."
Dimon made sure the "headhunters" understood that he wanted to work.
After he came back in September, Jamie Dimon had an office and started seeing people. "I had ideas. I (was) going to start my own merchant bank, I wrote up documents, I spoke to people, getting partners … didn’t love it," Fortune quoted him as saying.
“Jeff Bezos, who I hit it off with in 1999, was looking for a president. He and I hit it off, I still talk to him, he’s an outstanding guy, it was just a bridge too far for me,” Dimon shared.
Dimon went on to add that he didn’t necessarily fully understand the business and was supposed to move his family to Seattle. Still he “loved the idea of never having to put a suit on again and getting a house boat somewhere.”
Amazon later went on to rope in Joseph Galli as its president and COO in June 1999. Before that, Galli was working for power tools supplier Black and Decker.
“Home Depot, I love those people,” Dimon said. The JPMorgan Chase CEO told them he had "never been in a Home Depot" as it was not his "natural habitat".
“They were very much like we don’t care about that, you’ll learn, we want the guy with the heart and the soul," he added.
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1. Who is the current CEO of Amazon?
Andy Jassy is currently serving as the president and chief executive officer of Amazon.
2. Who is Jamie Dimon?
Dimon is the CEO of JPMorgan Chase.
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He became co-CEO when Smith Barney was merged with the Salomon Brothers in 1997. A year after that, Dimon got the job of Citigroup president and two years later he joined Bank One as its chairman and CEO. Thereafter, he moved up the ranks at JPMorgan when the company got acquired in 2004.
Proposal from Jeff Bezos
In an episode of the ‘How Leaders Lead’ podcast aired last week, Dimon shared that he considered leaving the banking sector during the time he took a gap between Citigroup and Bank One.Also Read : Why Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with Donald Trump is key to Gaza ceasefire
At that time, Dimon decided to "take the summer off, take the kids around the world and start really thinking about September”.
However, he shared that he did take phone calls and heard every one "respectfully, some you could call almost insulting what they were offering me."
Dimon made sure the "headhunters" understood that he wanted to work.
After he came back in September, Jamie Dimon had an office and started seeing people. "I had ideas. I (was) going to start my own merchant bank, I wrote up documents, I spoke to people, getting partners … didn’t love it," Fortune quoted him as saying.
Proposal to be Amazon president
During the podcast, Dimon recalled how he was close enough to sign a deal with Jeff Bezos as Amazon president.“Jeff Bezos, who I hit it off with in 1999, was looking for a president. He and I hit it off, I still talk to him, he’s an outstanding guy, it was just a bridge too far for me,” Dimon shared.
Dimon went on to add that he didn’t necessarily fully understand the business and was supposed to move his family to Seattle. Still he “loved the idea of never having to put a suit on again and getting a house boat somewhere.”
Amazon later went on to rope in Joseph Galli as its president and COO in June 1999. Before that, Galli was working for power tools supplier Black and Decker.
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Dimon said the company that tempted him the most to bid adieu to the financial sector was Home Depot.“Home Depot, I love those people,” Dimon said. The JPMorgan Chase CEO told them he had "never been in a Home Depot" as it was not his "natural habitat".
“They were very much like we don’t care about that, you’ll learn, we want the guy with the heart and the soul," he added.
Also Read : Sweden school shooting: Five people shot in Örebro, Police warn of ongoing danger
FAQs
1. Who is the current CEO of Amazon?
Andy Jassy is currently serving as the president and chief executive officer of Amazon.
2. Who is Jamie Dimon?
Dimon is the CEO of JPMorgan Chase.
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