Connect with us

Finance

Big short traders are very long gold, say Moses, Collins and Daniel

Published

on

Continue Reading

Finance

JPMorgan Chase is heading upmarket to woo America’s millionaires

Published

on

A living space in the new J.P. Morgan financial center branch format in Palm Beach.

Courtesy: JP Morgan

JPMorgan Chase thinks it has cracked the code on managing more money for America’s millionaires.

It’s not a new financial product, a novel software program or an enticing sign-up bonus. Instead, it’s a refurbished take on an old concept — the brick-and-mortar bank branch — along with new standards for service that are at the heart of its aspirations.

The bank is unveiling 14 of these new format branches — each acquired when JPMorgan took over First Republic in 2023 — in tony ZIP codes in New York, California, Florida and Massachusetts, including Napa, Palm Beach and Wellesley Hills.

It’s part of JPMorgan’s push to convince affluent Americans, many who already use Chase checking accounts or credit cards, that the bank is ready to manage their millions.

JPMorgan is the country’s biggest bank by deposits and assets and has a top share in areas as disparate as Wall Street trading and retail credit cards. But one of the only major categories where it isn’t a clear leader is in wealth management; peers like Morgan Stanley and Bank of America exceed it there.

While half of the 19 million affluent households in the U.S. bank with JPMorgan, it has just a 10% share of their investing dollars, according to Jennifer Roberts, CEO of Chase Consumer Banking.

“We have this giant opportunity to convince customers to have their wealth management business with us in addition to their deposit relationship,” Roberts said in a recent interview.

Helped by its acquisition of First Republic, which was known for catering to rich families living on either coast, JPMorgan decided to launch a new tier of service. Called J.P. Morgan Private Client, it is anchored by the new physical locations, of which there will be 31 by the end of next year.

The service comes with its own mobile banking app, but its main appeal is the in-person experience: Instead of being handed off to multiple employees like at a Chase branch, J.P. Morgan Private Client members are assigned to a single banker.

“What First Republic did really well was deliver a concierge-level of service where if you have an issue, a person owned it for you and you didn’t have to worry about it,” Roberts said. “So with this experience we are going to deliver a more elevated concierge type of service, like you would expect at a high-end hotel.”

The price of entry: at least $750,000 in deposits and investments, though Roberts said the bank is aiming for those with around $2 million to $3 million in balances.

Quiet opulence

JP Morgan’s Palm Beach Reception.

Courtesy: JP Morgan

The design elements and hushed environment are “really meant to illustrate that we’re there to have a more serious, less-transactional conversation about your wealth planning over the course of time,” said Stevie Baron, JPMorgan’s head of affluent banking.

Those conversations involve planning for long-term goals and examining clients’ portfolios to see whether they are on track to reach them, he said.

Elements of the new high-end branch format could find their way to regular Chase branches, especially the 1,000 or so that are in high-income areas, Baron said.

JPMorgan executives have said the bank’s branch network has already succeeded as a feeder into the firm’s wealth management offerings.

The new service tier — which sits above the bank’s Chase Private Client offering, which is for those with at least $150,000 in balances and is delivered in the regular branches — is expected to help JPMorgan’s retail bank double client assets from the $1.08 trillion it reached in March.

“Obviously it’s a big challenge, because clients already have their established wealth managers, but it’s something that we’ve been making really strong progress in,” Roberts said.

Come one, come all

But attempting to create a new, more luxurious brand from a mainstream one — think the difference between Toyota and its luxury brand Lexus — is not without its risks. Or at least, momentary confusion.

So far, the two flagship financial centers in New York and San Francisco opened late last year haven’t seen heavy foot traffic, Roberts admitted.

“Our biggest challenge is that we don’t have people walking in because they don’t really understand what they are,” Roberts said. “So we just need to get the awareness out there.”

While JPMorgan is leaning on the first part of its name, rather than Chase, to signal exclusivity for the new branches, that may deter people from walking through the doors and starting conversations.

“I just want this to be acknowledged: We’re never going to turn someone away. Any customer can come and leverage any of our branches at any time,” Roberts said.

“We want people walking in, having the experience, meeting with our experts and understanding how we can help support their financial goals over time,” she said.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO

JPMorgan opens financial center in Columbus Circle in bet on wealthy customers

Continue Reading

Finance

Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: X, TSLA, PDD, CRWV

Published

on

Continue Reading

Finance

Xiaomi takes aim at Tesla’s bestselling car in China with its longer-range YU7

Published

on

Xiaomi revealed its first electric SUV, the YU7, in Beijing on May 22, 2025, and said its full launch would be held in July.

Adek Berry | Afp | Getty Images

BEIJING — China’s Xiaomi, known for its smartphones, only recently entered the electric-vehicle space. It is now taking aim at Tesla’s bestselling car in China.

Less than a year after launching its first electric car, Xiaomi late on Thursday revealed its YU7 SUV and claimed it would have a driving range of at least 760 kilometers (472 miles) on a single charge.

That’s well above the 719 km advertised for Tesla’s extended-range Model Y. Driving range has been a selling point for consumers worried about frequent battery charging.

“We expect Yu7 would significantly erode Tesla Model-Y’s China market share,” Citi analyst Jeff Chung said in a report Sunday.

Citi expects the YU7 to be priced around 250,000 yuan to 320,000 yuan ($34,700 to $44,420), and forecasts monthly sales of about 30,000 units. Once sales pick up, Citi predicts annual sales of 300,000 to 360,000 units.

That price range pits the YU7 against Tesla’s Model Y, which starts at 263,500 yuan in China. Xiaomi plans to announce the YU7’s price at the car’s official launch in July.

Waymo co-CEO on 10 million driverless rides and Tesla’s coming robotaxi challenge

Xiaomi plans to announce the YU7’s price at the car’s official launch in July.

Tesla’s Model Y was the second most sold new energy vehicle in China in the six months through April, according to Autohome, an online platform for consumer information on cars in China. BYD’s far cheaper Seagull ranked first, while the budget Wuling Hongguang Mini ranked third.

For April alone, Geely’s Geome Xingyuan topped the new energy vehicle bestsellers’ list, followed by BYD’s Seagull and the Wuling Hongguan Mini, Autohome data showed. Xiaomi’s SU7 sedan ranked fourth, followed by three BYD models, while Tesla’s Model Y ranked eighth.

Better than Xiaomi’s first car?

The YU7 is positioned as a “luxury SUV” and its sales could outperform that of the SU7, Elinor Leung, managing director of Asia telecom and internet research at CLSA, said in a note.

Last year, Xiaomi released its first electric car, the SU7 sedan, priced $4,000 lower than Tesla’s Model 3 at the time. Tesla subsequently reduced Model 3 price to 235,500 yuan as of May 26 — although it is still more expensive than the SU7 sedan at 215,900 yuan.

Xiaomi delivered more than 28,000 units of its SU7 car in April, down from its record of more than 29,000 during the previous month. That comes after the crash of an SU7 vehicle in China that left three people dead. China has since mandated automakers to be careful with the language when advertising driver-assist systems.

Xiaomi revealed the YU7 on Thursday at the end of a launch event for a premium phone using a new chip that the company claimed beat Apple’s on certain metrics. CNBC was not able to independently verify the claims.

Rival electric car company Xpeng is due Wednesday to release the Max version of its relatively popular Mona M03 car. The Max version includes more advanced driver-assist capabilities. The company previously said the Max would begin deliveries after the Lunar New Year holiday in February.

Weekly analysis and insights from Asia’s largest economy in your inbox
Subscribe now

Continue Reading

Trending