JPMorgan Hires a Crypto, Metaverse Specialist to Increase Industry Presence

The American banking giant – JPMorgan Chase – is looking for a Vice President (VP), Payments Business Development Manager, to join its Technology, Media, and Telecom West Coast Payments Team to be part of the Web 3, Crypto, Fintech, & Metaverse division.

JPMorgan’s latest push toward the digital asset industry could be considered a surprise since its CEO – Jamie Dimon – is a fierce critic of bitcoin.

Hiring a Crypto Guy

According to a LinkedIn job offering, JPMorgan wants to appoint a “curious and dynamic” leader who could guide the company’s operations in “this sea of technological change.” The banking giant outlined that the individual should have the necessary technical knowledge and be ready to collaborate with financial regulators and emerging entities in the niche.

“Specifically, this individual will lead proactive prospect and client engagement, collaborate with multiple internal partners, and develop solutions to meet strategic and complex needs of our corporate clients,” the offering reads.

Other main responsibilities will be to “identify and win new payments opportunities in the Web 3, Crypto, Fintech, & Metaverse industry subvertical.” They will also have to analyze clients’ operational structure and understand the customers’ cryptocurrency targets.

Being available for users all the time, explaining all regulatory requirements to them, and staying on top of the competition will be key duties, too.

Subsequently, JPMorgan explained that only individuals with at least five-year experience in a financial services sales role could fit for the role. Those who have previously worked in the banking industry will be “strongly preferred.”

While the company’s stance toward cryptocurrencies is predominantly negative, this is not the case when speaking about the Metaverse. In February this year, the Wall Street behemoth released a report where it predicted that the integrated network of 3D virtual worlds could become a trillion-dollar market in the next few years.

Dimon’s War With Bitcoin

It is a rare event, though, that the banking giant (specifically CEO Jamie Dimon) says something positive about bitcoin. Over the years, he has labeled the coin worthless and warned investors to stay away from it.

In October 2021, he reiterated his position arguing that BTC serves as the “fool’s gold of the future” and has no “intrinsic value.” As such, he expects financial watchdogs to apply strict regulations on it.

Last month, JPMorgan’s Chief Global Strategist – David Kelly – advised investors to sell their bitcoin holdings, citing the market’s enhanced volatility and the risk of recession.