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Despite political pressure, McDonald鈥檚 is standing by its commitment to inclusion. While it recently replaced 鈥淒EI鈥� language with 鈥渋nclusion,鈥� its initiatives remain intact, per Bloomberg. That contrasts with brands like Target, Nike, and JPMorgan Chase, which have scaled back DEI and climate efforts amid conservative backlash. McDonald鈥檚 cosmetic rebranding reflects a strategic calculation: investing in programs it views as beneficial for business and essential to long-term brand equity, especially with key demographics. If it avoids major backlash, McDonald鈥檚 could offer a model for other brands weighing how to uphold values while managing political and reputational risk.

Affirm teams up with JPMorgan to expand BNPL reach: The partnership will help the fintech keep pace with Klarna and capitalize on growing demand for flexible payment options.

And recently JPMorgan announced it鈥檒l open 14 new financial centers in targeted areas, and expand accessibility beyond those regions, per Business Insider. The details: The new centers will be in California, Florida, Massachusetts, and New York鈥攚ith specific mentions of Palm Beach in Florida and Madison Avenue in New York City.

Both JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley reported record equity trade revenue, and Bank of America and Citigroup reported trade revenue surges, thanks to strong market activity early in the year. Wells Fargo reported higher revenue from client fees, fueling its profit growth. JPMorgan reported higher investment banking fees, but Goldman Sachs reported lower investment banking fees for the quarter.

The news: JPMorgan and Wells Fargo kicked off the Q1 earnings season with some better-than-expected results but also took steps to prepare for a deeper economic slowdown. JPMorgan beat revenue expectations with $46.01 billion, per CNBC. Wells Fargo revenues fell 3% to $20.15 billion, but per-share profit of $1.33 beat expectations.

A comparison: Many FIs have a blog鈥�JPMorgan Chase regularly publishes articles categorized into Money Matters, Savings, Life Moments, and Community & Leaders, for example. It offers thoughtful expert insights and educates its readers, while certainly helping its SEO score.

We will be closely watching issuers鈥� Q1 earnings, starting with JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo on April 11, to assess the impact on issuers moving forward.

What it means for Klarna: The BNPL firm has made multiple partnerships to expand its merchant acceptance ahead of its now-delayed IPO: including with Walmart鈥檚 OnePay, DoorDash, JPMorgan Payments, and Stripe. Partnering with Clover will help it to make in-store inroads, which has eluded most BNPL players.

By combining their money management and back-office capabilities, the merged firm could become a powerhouse in institutional investing, challenging incumbents like State Street and JPMorgan. Both firms have been investing in digital infrastructure and automation, and together they could set new standards in technology-enabled efficiency.

Affirm has inked a flurry of other deals to keep up with BNPL competitors and card-linked installments, including Mattress Firm, FIS, Adyen, and JPMorgan to capture the widest number of consumers. Autopay: Auto-repair bills are increasingly unaffordable. A ConsumerAffairs poll found that 13% of surveyed consumers could not afford a $1,000 repair bill, even with taking on debt.

A consortium of traditional banks including JPMorgan and Bank of America is also considering launching a stablecoin to speed up transactions and avoid disintermediation if crypto takes off as a bona fide payment method. Our take: Coinbase is the biggest winner in this partnership.

The news: JPMorgan Chase鈥檚 financial media network (FMN) notched $12 billion in customer spend鈥攁 31% YoY increase鈥攊n 2024, according to company reports. How we got here: Chase debuted Chase Media Solutions in April 2024. The FMN uses cardholder purchasing insights to help retailers and brands develop new marketing strategies to capture new customers and entice back lapsed shoppers.

The consortia are backed by JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and other major US banks. EWS is primed to be a leader for this initiative as the operator of Zelle, the connective tissue between banks for P2P transactions. What鈥檚 the value add for banks?

But Klarna鈥檚 recent moves like its Walmart and JPMorgan Payments tie-ups can help it maintain its growth as it figures out what鈥檚 next for its IPO.

JPMorgan Chase is the largest US bank by assets, according to the latest release from The Federal Reserve Board. Here is the full list of the top 10 banks in the US, ranked by assets as of December 31, 2024. 1. JPMorgan Chase Bank 鈥� $3.46 trillion. JPMorgan Chase Bank, headquartered in Columbus, OH, remains America's largest bank with consolidated assets of $3.46 trillion.

In an era promising regulatory clarity and enthusiasm from the Trump administration, many incumbents鈥攆rom big banks like JPMorgan to big retailers like Amazon and Walmart鈥攁re trying to strike the stablecoin iron while it鈥檚 hot.

Sectors like financial services ($250 million), tech ($140 million), and healthcare ($110 million) continue ramping up spend, with Rakuten, JPMorgan Chase, and Toyota leading the charge. Sponsorship now goes well beyond signage: integrations span naming rights, jersey patches, digital activations, and high-profile player deals. The league鈥檚 heightened media profile also plays a role.

Similarly, tie-ins with JPMorgan Payments and Stripe helped Klarna reach more merchants during Q1 2025. Moderating AI enthusiasm: Klarna credited AI with increasing average revenue per employee by 152% and cutting customer service cost per transaction by 40% since Q1 2023.

JPMorgan Chase. Marriott Bonvoy. Morningstar. MMYG Travel Intelligence. NerdWallet. OAG. PYMNTS. Reuters. Seeking Alpha. Skift. Southwest Airlines. TD Securities. View from the Wing. Wall Street Journal. Yahoo Finance.