One of Jamie Dimon's heirs apparent, Matt Zames, is leaving J.P. Morgan

Matt Zames, chief operating officer at J.P. Morgan Chase , is stepping down from the giant bank, according to an internal memo obtained by MarketWatch. Zames, often described as an heir apparent to CEO Jamie Dimon, had worked at the bank for some 13 years and had held some of the bank's most important roles, including serving as chief investment officer in the wake of the so-called London Whale scandal, which saddled the bank with an embarrassing loss and dented its risk-management reputation. "Matt has held leadership roles in our investment banking and trading businesses, and he was an integral part of the team that helped manage the firm successfully through the financial crisis," said Dimon in the internal memo on Thursday. The executive is expected to leave in the coming weeks; details about his next move weren't immediately known. The 46-year-old Zames had long been considered among the C-suite executives in position to succeed Dimon should he decide to step down from the helm of J.P. Morgan.

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