JPMorgan Names Hiscox’s Walter Head of Business-Banking Division

(Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. tapped Hiscox Ltd.’s Ben Walter to lead the firm’s business-banking division, succeeding Jennifer Roberts, who was named head of consumer banking earlier this year.

Walter, 47, will join the biggest U.S. bank in October as chief executive officer of the unit, which provides services to small businesses with as much as $20 million in annual revenue, according to an internal memo Thursday from consumer and community banking co-heads Marianne Lake and Jennifer Piepszak.

“Ben thinks customer first, and has a proven track record of driving business growth and building worldwide retail brands,” Lake and Piepszak wrote in the memo. “We’re looking forward to Ben’s leadership and expertise to make it even easier for our customers to grow their businesses.”

Walter led global retail at insurer Hiscox for the past three years. He joined the Bermuda-based firm in 2011, and previously worked at BlackRock Inc.

“Small businesses are the engine of our economy, and I have a passion for supporting business owners as they look to grow,” Walter said in an emailed statement. “Chase is the ideal platform to deliver quality products and services to small businesses, especially in the digital age.”

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