JPMorgan Chase & Co. is expanding its high-end Sapphire brand to include checking accounts, hoping to attract and keep increasingly affluent Millennial customers, the largest U.S. bank said on Wednesday.
The bank is changing its Chase Premier Platinum accounts, which require a minimum of $75,000 in deposits and certain investments, into Sapphire Banking accounts, spokeswoman Elizabeth Seymour said.
The new accounts will offer special access to sports and entertainment events, as do its Sapphire Reserve credit cards.
The Reserve card became a big hit with Millennials eager to travel when it was introduced in 2016 with generous sign-up and spending bonuses and access to travel lounges.
“We are focusing on customers who are starting to earn and save more,” Thasunda Duckett, CEO of Chase Consumer Banking, said in an interview. “They are reaching key milestones.”
The new bank accounts will also eliminate some of the fees that can annoy consumers, including those for wire transfers and foreign exchange at overseas ATMs.
The new account is another example of JPMorgan cutting prices and offering additional services to attract customers and take market share from competitors.
The launch of the Sapphire Reserve card disrupted the high-end credit card business and resulted in higher-than-expected startup expenses for JPMorgan.
JPMorgan has previously used tie-ins with Sapphire Reserve to promote its mortgage loans.




