JP Morgan Chase set to increase lead as largest US derivatives bank

JP Morgan Chase, the bank with the largest exposure to derivatives in the US, is set to increase its lead with the takeover of Bank One. The derivatives exposure of the combined banks will approach $35.5 trillion, nearly 54% of the combined value of the top 10 banks.

JP Morgan Chase already has more than double the exposure of its closest rival among the US commercial and retail banks - Bank of America (BoA) - with $34 trillion. BoA has $14 trillion. Citibank, with derivatives worth nearly $11 trillion, comes third in the list, published by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Only three US banks have derivatives worth more than 10 trillion, with Wachovia, the fourth largest, at less than $2.5 trillion. JP Morgan Chase announced it had agreed to acquire Chicago-based Bank One this week for about $60 billion.