J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has expressed his reluctance to invest in long-dated Treasury bills due to concerns over the U.S. national debt, which has reached $39 trillion. In a recent podcast, he noted that inflation data is not sufficient to reassure him about the stability of government bonds. Dimon warned that without proactive policymaking to address the escalating debt and high deficit numbers, the bond market could face a crisis, leading to increased interest rates and instability. He pointed out that the U.S. operates at a debt-to-GDP ratio of 120%, significantly higher than that of Europe and the UK, and emphasized the need for a mature response from policymakers to prevent future economic problems.

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Economy national debt

Jamie Dimon won’t put more of his own money into the long end of the bond market right now—thanks to the $39 trillion national debt

Eleanor Pringle

By Eleanor Pringle Eleanor Pringle

Senior Reporter, Economics and Markets Down Arrow Button Icon

Eleanor Pringle

By Eleanor Pringle Eleanor Pringle

Senior Reporter, Economics and Markets Down Arrow Button Icon

July 21, 2026, 6:23 AM ET

Jamie Dimon, chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Jamie Dimon, chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co.Tom Brenner/Bloomberg - Getty Images

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J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says he is against investing his personal wealth any further into long-dated Treasury bills because of the potential for a bond market crisis brought on by the U.S.’s $39 trillion in national debt.

Dimon has continually lobbied policymakers to take action over the debt—and they have continually disappointed him.

In an appearance on the Master Investor podcast, Dimon was asked whether he would be a buyer of long-dated government bonds at the moment. “Personally, no,” he responded. “I know that the inflation numbers were good yesterday … the thing about numbers, you dig into these numbers, I mean really dig into them, and I wouldn’t give them too much credence.”

Crisis fears

Of course, the basis of the bond market is the belief that the government will always have the ability to pay its debts—a pretty solid bet given the might of the U.S. economy and the central bank’s ability to influence the value of the debt through its money supply.

However, with the Treasury accumulating debt at a rapid pace—it’s now at more than $39 trillion and interest payments are due at the rate of $24 billion a week—economists and private market experts alike fear that, at some point, lenders will start demanding higher rates to reflect the risk associated with the funding.

The U.S. is currently operating at a debt-to-GDP ratio of around 120%, Europe at approximately 90%, and the UK at a little over 95%.

“These are very high debt numbers and very high deficit numbers, and we’re actually doing quite well,” Dimon said. “Usually you have to have like a great recession or a depression or to have a war, to have numbers like that.”

Dimon has often suggested that this issue will come home to roost and has once again advocated that policymakers “deal with it maturely and sit down.”

“That would be the far better way to do it,” the banker continued. “The other way is to wait for it to become a problem, and my guess is that’s what’s going to happen. And that will exhibit itself with higher interest rates, the market getting rattled a little bit, people talking about it constantly—remember the bond vigilantes—hopefully not worse than that, but it could be worse than that.”

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About the Author

By Eleanor PringleSenior Reporter, Economics and Markets

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Eleanor Pringle is an award-winning senior reporter at Fortune covering news, the economy, and personal finance. Eleanor previously worked as a business correspondent and news editor in regional news in the U.K. She completed her journalism training with the Press Association after earning a degree from the University of East Anglia.

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Economy national debt

Jamie Dimon won’t put more of his own money into the long end of the bond market right now—thanks to the $39 trillion national debt

By Eleanor PringleJuly 21, 2026

1 hour ago