Jamie Dimon puts $24 million behind U.S. shipbuilding push
JPMorgan Chase says the funding will support submarine manufacturing, maritime small businesses and suppliers tied to the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
By Sal Moretti · Money Reporter
2 min read
Jamie Dimon has rolled out a $24 million JPMorgan Chase effort aimed at strengthening American shipbuilding, with part of the money tied to a new submarine manufacturing facility at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, CNBC reported.
The JPMorgan Chase CEO announced the plan Wednesday on CNBC, framing it as part of the bank’s much larger push to finance industries it sees as central to U.S. economic and national security.
According to JPMorgan, the $24 million package includes $18 million in loans and investments, along with $6 million in grants. The money is meant to help fund a submarine manufacturing facility being built by Rhoads Industries, expand lending to small businesses connected to the maritime sector and support regional suppliers.
“The arsenal of democracy has been reignited,” Dimon told CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin.
Dimon also pointed to activity at the Philadelphia Navy Yard involving Hanwha, the South Korean conglomerate that has a U.S. vessel-making subsidiary.
“People said it couldn’t happen, but here you have Hanwha shipbuilding at the Philadelphia Navy Yard,” Dimon said on CNBC.
Part of a $1.5 trillion security bet
The shipbuilding announcement sits inside JPMorgan’s $1.5 trillion initiative to finance sectors the bank considers important to U.S. security and economic strength. CNBC reported that the program was launched last year and includes shipbuilding among its targeted industries.
JPMorgan has also expanded that broader security-focused financing effort into Europe this year, according to CNBC.
The bank’s latest move lands as governments are putting more money into defense and domestic industrial capacity. CNBC cited rising geopolitical tensions, including the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, as part of the backdrop for renewed investment in military and industrial production.
Shipbuilding has become one of the sectors drawing attention under that wider security umbrella. JPMorgan’s funding, as described by the bank, is not only aimed at one facility but also at the web of smaller companies and suppliers that support maritime production.
Rhoads Industries is building the submarine manufacturing facility at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, according to JPMorgan. The bank said its loans, investments and grants are designed to help that project while also opening more credit to maritime-linked small businesses.
Dimon’s announcement adds another piece to JPMorgan’s effort to align financing with industries the bank says are important to national resilience. In this case, the target is a very physical one: ships, submarines, suppliers and the industrial yards needed to build them.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.