James Dimon, chairman and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, is quickly becoming Wall Street’s banker of last resort, notes the WSJ on Monday. A decade after Dimon’s career seemed shattered by his notorious ouster from Citigroup, he is playing a critical role in the global credit crunch at a time when rival firms are on their knees – and has emerged as one of Wall Street’s most powerful players. Dimon was alerted to Bear’s financial distress on Thursday evening as he celebrated his 52nd birthday. All weekend, he was locked in negotiations to buy the 85-year-old institution. If he had balked, Bear could have been forced to file for bankruptcy protection and the ripple effects felt throughout the global financial system.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Monday, March 17th, 2008 at 5:45 and is filed under Capital markets, M&A, People. Tagged with bear stearns, jamie dimon, jpmorgan. Edit this entry.