US banks post record profits as war and inflation fuel trading gains

JPMorgan Chase reported record second-quarter net income of $21.2 billion, or $7.70 a share. The results landed on July 14, 2026.

JPMorgan Chase earnings excluding significant items came to $16.9 billion, while equities revenue climbed 86% to a record $6.03 billion for the quarter. Investment-banking fees also benefited from a wave of big-ticket initial public offerings and dealmaking, giving the bank one of its strongest trading and advisory stretches in years even as persistent inflation and war kept markets unsettled.

Goldman Sachs posted second-quarter net revenues of $20.34 billion and net earnings of $6.63 billion for the period ended June 30. Market volatility tied to the Middle East war helped push its equities business to a record. Bank of America posted second-quarter net income of $9.1 billion, or $1.21 a share, with equities trading revenue jumping 70% to a record $3.6 billion and sales and trading revenue reaching a record $7.1 billion.

Wells Fargo posted second-quarter net income of $6.4 billion, or $2.00 per diluted share, lifted by interest income and trading. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation data showed insured U.S. banks and savings institutions earned $80.5 billion in the first quarter of 2026, a return on assets of 1.26 percent, across 4,278 institutions. Domestic deposits rose for a seventh straight quarter and loan growth was strong, but unrealized losses remained elevated.

Jamie Dimon warned that risks are “shifting below the surface like tectonic plates.” He cited geopolitical tensions and wars, energy-price volatility, trade uncertainty, large global fiscal deficits and elevated asset prices, even as he said the U.S. economy remained resilient.