New York, Jan 12, 2026, 11:32 a.m. EST — Regular session
- JPMorgan shares fall about 2% as bank and card-linked stocks slide on policy risk
- Trump calls for a one-year 10% cap on credit card interest rates; analysts question the legal path
- Focus turns to JPMorgan’s Tuesday earnings for comments on consumer credit and outlook
JPMorgan Chase & Co shares fell about 2% to $322.55 in morning trading on Monday after President Donald Trump called for a one-year cap that would limit credit card interest rates to 10%. “It would take an Act of Congress for such rate caps to be in place,” UBS Global analysts wrote, while Seaport Research analyst Bill Ryan said “affordability has become a top concern.” (Reuters)
The move matters because credit cards are a high-yield business for big banks, and a rate cap would cut straight into what lenders can charge on revolving balances. It also lands right as the big banks kick off quarterly results, when investors usually get fresh detail on consumer borrowing, payment trends and credit losses.
Federal Reserve data show the average interest rate on credit card plans was 20.97% in November, making a 10% cap a sharp reset in pricing. That headline rate is an APR — annual percentage rate — the stated yearly cost of carrying a balance. (FRED)
The Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF was down about 1%, with peers also under pressure. Bank of America was down about 1.7%, Citigroup fell about 3.5%, and Capital One slid about 6.8%.
Trump floated the cap on Friday without detailing how it would be enforced, and the lack of mechanics is part of what rattled the tape. Traders are treating it as a fresh piece of political risk for a sector that already lives and dies on regulation and headline exposure.
Analysts have warned a hard cap could push lenders to shrink credit lines or close accounts for riskier borrowers, rather than lend at rates they view as uneconomic. That would shift the pain from pricing to access, especially for consumers with weaker credit.
Credit cards are unsecured loans — there is no collateral — and banks typically argue the higher rates help cover defaults and fraud, along with rewards and servicing costs. A forced cut would likely show up as tighter underwriting, higher fees, or both, depending on how any rule is written.
JPMorgan is due to report fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results on Tuesday, with the release scheduled around 7:00 a.m. ET and a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET. (JPMorgan Chase)
Investors will be listening for how management frames consumer spending, card delinquencies and charge-offs, and any early read on whether borrowers are leaning harder on revolving credit. They will also parse guidance on net interest income — the spread between what the bank earns on loans and what it pays on deposits — at a moment when rates and politics are both moving targets.
The risk for bulls is that the proposal gains traction in Congress or morphs into a broader crackdown on consumer lending economics, keeping a lid on bank multiples even if earnings land fine. The flip side is that if Washington reality-checks the idea quickly, today’s selloff could fade and the market may swing back to the usual driver: the numbers.
Next up is JPMorgan’s results and call on Tuesday, where any shift in tone on consumer credit and pricing power will set the mood for the rest of the bank earnings week.
