A slew of fines by regulators saw JP Morgan’s legal costs mount to $2.9 billion last year, with an unexpectedly high $1 billion bill for the fourth quarter of 2014.
Between 2009 and 2013, the company paid out $55 billion for legal-related costs, according to the Conduct Costs Project.
“Banks are under assault,” boss Jamie Dimon told the Guardian. “We have five or six regulators coming at us on every issue. Obviously companies make mistakes. We try to resolve it, we try to fix it, we admit it,” he said.
This month, the bank paid a $660m settlement to regulators for its part in the manipulation of foreign exchange markets. Five other banks have also incurred penalties.
Despite the additional costs, JP Morgan has enjoyed a highly profitable year, with income of over $22bn - a jump from just $18bn the previous year.