Banking and Finance Law Daily Wrap Up, CREDIT, DEBIT AND GIFT CARDS—Warren, citing Dimon comments on credit card rates, asks him to back legislation, (Feb 19, 2026)

By Nora Macaluso

The JPMorgan Chase CEO’s public comments align with the substance of a Democrat-backed bill in the Senate, Warren said.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, suggested JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon should publicly support legislation that would allow states to cap interest rates on credit cards and consumer loans.

Dimon, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said President Trump’s proposal to cap credit-card interest rates at 10 percent “would be an economic disaster,” causing many Americans to lose access to credit cards. “The people crying the most won’t be the credit card companies,” he said. However, given the “huge disagreement” over the notion, “I think we should test it,” Dimon said. A “great idea” would be for the government to “force banks” to cap rates in two states, Vermont and Massachusetts, “and see what happens,” he said.

“Just last month, you suggested that certain states should impose a 10% credit card interest rate cap on banks,” Warren wrote in a letter to Dimon. “If you indeed support this policy, I encourage you to publicly call on Congress to pass this legislation to make your self-described ‘great idea’ a reality.”

The Empowering States’ Rights to Protect Consumers Act would restore state powers removed in 1978, when the Supreme Court ruled that a national bank is only required to abide by the lending laws of the state in which the bank is based. The senators sponsoring the legislation, including Warren and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), say that decision led banks to reorganize and move to states with weak consumer lending protections (see Banking and Finance Law Daily, Feb. 2, 2026).

“If enacted, Massachusetts, Vermont, and other states would be able to impose interest rate limits, such as a 10% credit card interest rate cap, on banks like JPMorgan Chase,” Warren said in the letter.

“American families are struggling under the weight of record-high debt levels, including more than $1.2 trillion in credit card balances that carry an average interest rate of more than 20% and interest rates around 30% for consumers with low credit scores,” Warren said. “The largest four credit card banks, American Express, Capital One, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup alone earned $146 billion in credit card revenue last year.”

“Given your recent comments, please confirm your support for this legislation in writing by March 3, 2026,” the letter concluded.

Companies: JPMorgan Chase & Co.

LegislativeActivity: ConsumerCredit CreditDebitGiftCards InterestUsury