JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said higher taxes on UK banks could cause the bank to reconsider or scrap its planned new London headquarters in Canary Wharf. The project was announced in late November 2025 and involves a 3 million square-foot office expected to host up to 12,000 employees [1, 2].
The multibillion-dollar development is estimated to cost about US$13 billion and is planned as a six-year construction contributing nearly £9.9 billion to the UK economy. It also aims to create around 7,800 jobs [1, 2].
Dimon said JPMorgan has already paid about US$10 billion in extra UK taxes. While praising UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer as "a smart guy," he warned that if the government becomes hostile to banks with higher tax rates, "we will reconsider" the London project. "I've always objected to the fact — we didn't damage the UK in any way — we paid probably $10 billion back in extra taxes by now. I don't think that's right or fair," Dimon said [1, 2].
The warning comes amid political instability in the UK, where Prime Minister Starmer faces calls to resign after Labour's losses in local elections [1, 2]. A consortium of UK trade unions recently called for increasing the bank profits surcharge from 3% to 8% on profits above £100 million, fueling pressure for higher bank taxes [2].
In a related development, Citadel CEO Ken Griffin said he is reconsidering expansion plans for his New York office due to a dispute with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over proposed taxes on second homes [2].
The JPMorgan London headquarters project remains on schedule for completion over six years unless tax conditions change, with the bank closely monitoring the UK government's approach to banking taxes [1, 2].
