JP Morgan closes prop positioning unit

JP Morgan is closing its proprietary positioning unit, entailing significant job losses among its 80-strong staff.

Based largely in New York, the prop positioning unit is segregated from JP Morgan’s asset-class-specific trading businesses.

Many of these trading businesses also have prop trading groups embedded within them, which are expected to absorb some of the prop positioning unit’s activities.

The move appears to be a reflection of turbulent markets, which have led some banks to cut back their prop risk-taking over the past year. They have also meant diminished revenues for dealers, forcing them to consider restructuring and other cost-cutting measures.

A spokesman for JP Morgan in New York confirmed the change of strategy at the bank.