JPMorgan Chase is trying to bring a Silicon Valley sensibility to banking.
The largest U.S. bank recently loosened its dress code by allowing employees to dress in business-casual attire when appropriate. The news, first reported by The Wall Street Journal via an internal memo, was confirmed by a JPMorgan representative in response to an inquiry by CNBC.
The move is unusual given the staid image normally cultivated by Wall Street for years, in a sector closely identified with expensive pin-striped suits. Even during its heyday, the industry eschewed trends like 'Dress Down Fridays' embraced by other companies.
Nowadays, some banks have opted for casual Fridays, which may be the start of a wholehearted embrace of a more relaxed Wall Street dress code.
It also suggests big banks are trying to compete with the laid-back atmosphere found at technology companies and start-ups, the better to keep Silicon Valley from coaxing away the finance industry's employees. In recent years, tech upstarts have raided Wall Street banks for talent, and vice versa.
Last November, Uber poached three Goldman Sachs bankers, while earlier this year, hedge fund giant Bridgewater Associates lured Apple executive Jon Rubenstein away from the tech behemoth.