JPMorgan profit jumps 42%

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JPMorgan Chase & Co reported a much better-than- expected 42% jump in fourth-quarter profit on Friday, driven by the release of some of the reserves it had built up against coronavirus-driven loan losses and continued strength in its trading and investment banking units.

The bank’s net income rose to $12.1 billion, or $3.79 per share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31, from $8.5 billion, or $2.57 per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 3% to $30.2 billion. During the quarter, JPMorgan released credit reserves of $2.9 billion, boosting its profit.

Excluding the reserves, the bank reported net income of $9.9 billion, or $3.07 a share, which was well ahead of Wall Street estimates of $2.62 per share.

Investment banking revenue surged 37% to $2.5 billion, driven by higher advisory fees across all its products.

JPMorgan ended the year in better shape than most of its peer lenders, thanks to continued strength in investment banking and trading, which benefited from volatility in financial markets as investors reassessed their portfolios at the end of the year.