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JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley Cut Back DEI References, but Changes Differ

Both banks softened explicit DEI language in 2025 disclosures, but JPMorgan Chase also announced organizational changes while Morgan Stanley retained inclusion language and workforce figures.
From TheFinanceBase Team3 min to read
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In 2025, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley both reduced the prominence of explicit diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) language in annual-report disclosures. That does not show that either bank ended all inclusion programs: Morgan Stanley retained inclusion language and workforce figures, while JPMorgan Chase also announced specific organizational and training changes in March.

What changed at each bank?

Bank 2025 filing language Workforce information Reported operational changes
Morgan Stanley Removed the “Diversity and Inclusion” subheading used in the prior year. The comparable passage opened, “Meritocracy is at the heart of Morgan Stanley’s talent development,” and continued to describe an inclusive workplace. Banking Dive The filing reported that women were 40% of employees and 29% of officers; employees from ethnically diverse backgrounds were 35% of the U.S. workforce and 28% of U.S. officers. These are company-reported figures relayed by Banking Dive, not independently audited measures here. The cited reporting documents a change in filing emphasis, not a specific program termination.
JPMorgan Chase Its February 14, 2025 filing used “Workforce composition” instead of “Diversity, equity and inclusion” as the workforce table heading. Banking Dive counted one DEI mention, versus six in the prior year’s filing. The filing also discussed an inclusive workplace and anticipated criticism of public-policy positions, including DEI. Banking Dive Not stated in the cited reporting as a comparable set of figures for this filing. In a March 21, 2025 memo, COO Jenn Piepszak announced a shift from “equity” to “opportunity,” moving some centrally managed activities into business lines, possible consolidation of some activities, councils or chapters, and reduced training. Reuters

Did JPMorgan Chase get rid of DEI?

The evidence cited here does not establish that JPMorgan Chase ended all DEI or inclusion programs. It establishes a change in the 2025 filing’s wording and a set of organizational changes announced in March. Piepszak said the bank would call its effort Diversity, Opportunity and Inclusion (DOI). She explained that the “e” had meant equal opportunity to the bank, rather than equal outcomes, and said the revised name better reflected its approach to customers, employees and access to opportunities.

The memo described some centrally managed work moving to business lines such as human resources or corporate responsibility. It also said some activities, councils or chapters could be consolidated and training on these subjects would be reduced. Those are concrete changes, but they are not equivalent to a statement that every related activity stopped.

Why did Morgan Stanley change its diversity section?

Morgan Stanley’s filing shifted emphasis: it dropped the prior “Diversity and Inclusion” subheading and led the comparable passage with meritocracy. But it did not remove all discussion of inclusion. The filing said that a workforce reflecting the societies where the firm operates and its global client base was integral to its success, and that an inclusive workplace served employees’ and clients’ interests.

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The cited filing and reporting document the wording and figures, but do not establish a specific reason for the edit or show that an internal program ended. It would be inaccurate to treat a removed heading as proof of either.

Is this part of a wider retreat in company disclosures?

There was a broader change in public reporting. The Conference Board and ESGAUGE analyzed companies with disclosures in both 2024 and 2025, using data available as of July 14, 2025. Their measures concern public filings and disclosures—not a direct count of workplace programs or employee experiences. The Conference Board’s findings included:

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  • Mentions of “DEI” in major S&P 500 filings fell 68% from 2024 to 2025; mentions of “diversity” fell 33%.
  • Fifty-three percent of S&P 100 companies adjusted how they communicated or organized DEI in 2025 annual-report filings compared with 2024.
  • The share of S&P 500 companies reporting DEI metrics in executive compensation fell from 68% in 2024 to 35% in 2025.

Those figures describe disclosure patterns. They help show that the two banks’ language changes occurred amid a wider recalibration of corporate reporting, but they do not prove that companies uniformly ended internal initiatives or establish why any one company changed its approach. The Conference Board’s Ariane Marchis-Mouren said the decline in board-diversity disclosures reflected recalibration as companies faced heightened scrutiny, and cautioned that retreat from transparency could alienate stakeholders, including institutional investors.

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How current are these reports?

The bank-specific changes described above concern 2025 filings and a March 2025 memo. They should not be read as a definitive account of either bank’s position in 2026. JPMorganChase’s investor-relations site lists a 2025 annual report and a 2026 proxy statement, but the cited reporting does not establish what those newer materials say about DEI. The information presented here likewise does not establish post-2025 developments at Morgan Stanley. JPMorganChase investor relations

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