JPMorgan Chase (JPM) Chief Executive Jamie Dimon has left the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, more than six months after lawmakers called for his resignation because of JPMorgan's multibillion-dollar trading scandal.
Dimon departed when his term expired Dec. 31, a New York Fed spokeswoman said. Its board members customarily step down after serving a maximum of two three-year terms, as Dimon did, she said.
The New York Fed's nominating committee still has to recommend Dimon's replacement, she said. No deadline has been set.
Dimon was one of three Class A directors, who are elected by member banks to represent their interests. The board's other six directors represent the public.
The two Class A directors currently on the New York Fed's board are Richard Carrion, the chairman and CEO of Popular Inc. (BPOP), and Paul Mello, the president and CEO of Solvay Bank (SOBS) in Solvay, N.Y.
In May, as JPMorgan Chase's losses deepened in the London Whale trading fiasco, Dimon's presence on the New York Fed board ignited intense debate in Congress and the media.
Elizabeth Warren, during her successful run in Massachusetts for the U.S. Senate, said Dimon should resign "to send a signal to the American people that Wall Street bankers get it and to show that they understand the need for responsibility and accountability."
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., introduced a bill that would prevent bank executives from serving on the boards of regional Fed banks.
Sanders had also pushed for a 2011 study from the Government Accountability Office that called on the Fed to take steps to prevent conflicts of interest on the boards of its regional banks.
"This is not just a perception problem — the problem is real," Sanders said in May.
