JPMorgan is far too big to fail - but, then, so is Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Citigroup.  And JPMorgan is generally thought to be the safest and best run of the four of them (or at least better run than BofA and Citi).  But this spring, it is JPMorgan that is getting buffeted by the press, regulators, and others.  ISS is urging a vote against some directors as a result of the London Whale fiasco.  Congress ripped the firm over the same thing on March 15.  Mark Roe has been critical.  And now the Times is discussing the "full court press of federal investigations."

It is a season of woe for JPMorgan, as it finds itself in a very uncomfortable spotlight.  The Times has run 31 headlined stories on JPMorgan between today and March 1 (source).  It has run none on Wells Fargo (source), 9 on BofA (source), and 10 on Citi (source) during that time period.  And the London Whale trade, and subsequent defenestration of a number of JP executives, happened long ago.

Moreover, while the London Whale trade was terrible, it is by no means clear that JPMorgan has failed to manage the situation.  The firm is, admittedly, too big.  But it is not alone in that.  This is beginning to look to me like the start of something corporations fear most, a singling out scandal, whereby one firm becomes the poster child for the shortcomings of an industry sector - it is a way that Washington works, and one that corporations find difficult to understand.  Usually, those firms pay a disporportionate penalty for their celebrity; I can't help but be a little sympathetic for the bankers in this case, if it turns out that that is in their future.

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