THE head of US banking giant JP Morgan harboured hopes of a “strong recovery” after the group posted a 54% profits hike for the first three months of 2010.
The bank’s net profits of £2.1bn were led by its investment banking arm – sparking a return to bumper payouts at the division.
After cutting investment banking payouts to just £355m for the last quarter of 2009 amid intense scrutiny over pay, compensation costs soared to £1.9bn for the latest quarter.
The profits improvement came despite £2.4bn in provisions for losses on consumer loans as borrowers struggled in the aftermath of recession.
Chief executive Jamie Dimon said bad debts at the bank were stabilising and gave an upbeat view of prospects for the rest of the year.
