Jamie Dimon Says He Has JPMorgan Chase ‘Effectively Stockpiling’ Cash Because There’s a ‘Very Good Chance’ of Long-Term Inflation

A banking industry titan believes inflation will be “more than transitory” in the U.S. economy.

Speaking Monday at a Morgan Stanley virtual conference (via CNBC and Bloomberg), JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says inflation could well be long-term

“We have a lot of cash and capability and we’re going to be very patient, because I think you have a very good chance inflation will be more than transitory,” Dimon said.

The JPMorgan Chase head added that his bank has been essentially hoarding cash as it waits for interest rates to go up.

“If you look at our balance sheet, we have $500 billion in cash, we’ve actually been effectively stockpiling more and more cash waiting for opportunities to invest at higher rates,” Dimon said. “I do expect to see higher rates and more inflation, and we’re prepared for that.”

Inflation concerns have grown among economists as prices have risen in a number of sectors. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Fed could indicate, later this week, that they plan to hike interest rates sooner than they had previously estimated as a result.