Felix Salmon (actually, Ben Walsh) highlights the woes of JPMorgan, and outlined by Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon, moaning in his letter to the company’s shareholders about the iniquities of Dodd-Frank, inflicted on Wall Street by those ham-handed rubes down in DC. Still, the “record” $19 billion the firm hauled in in 2011 was up 9% from the “record” $17.4 billion hauled in in 2010.
Still, JPMorgan could have done better. “On an absolute and static basis, we believe that our earnings should be $23 billion – $24 billion. The main reason for the difference between what we are earning and what we should be earning continues to be high costs and losses in mortgage and mortgage-related issues.”
The main reason(s), dude? You failed to control your costs and you made some mistakes with mortgages? Those were the main reasons? And not those interfering hicks down in DC? Maybe you can afford to pay some higher taxes!
