JPMorgan traders may have sought to conceal losses

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon sought to hide escalating trading losses that surpassed US$6.2 billion, misled investors and dodged regulators as a “monstrous” derivatives bet deteriorated last year, a Senate probe found.

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By Ron Rowland:I don't know about you, but here in Texas I can barely drive a mile without passing a JPMorgan Chase (JPM) branch. They're even inside the grocery stores. Simply being everywhere doesn't make a bank safe, of course. As we learned last week, traders in London just cost JPMorgan $2 billion and possibly more! Fitch Ratings downgraded its credit rating one notch to A-plus, and it looks like Moody's may cut the bank, too.

(Adds other probe details starting in eighth paragraph.)

Traders who made calamitous bets on corporate debt have cost JPMorgan Chase nearly $6 billion so far. The bank announced the losses on Friday but said the firm still managed to earn $5 billion in the second quarter. But the impact of the trading loss goes far beyond the bottom line.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

By David Zanoni:The banks have been some of the most vulnerable companies in recent years since the 2008 financial crisis. The stocks of the banks get hit hard when worries about the economy or European debt are on the front burners. While the short-term outlook could still create some volatility, the long-term outlook for banks looks promising.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - There is a new twist in the London Whale trading scandal that cost JPMorgan Chase $6.2 billion in trading losses last year.