Todd Combs JPMorgan Named to Lead Strategic Unit

Todd Combs will join JPMorgan Chase in January 2026 to lead the bank’s Strategic Investment Group, the direct-equity sleeve of its Security and Resiliency Initiative. The initiative aims to channel large-scale capital into sectors tied to U.S. economic and national resilience.

Combs to Lead Strategic Investment Group and Advisory Council

JPMorgan said in a press release on Dec. 8, 2025, that it appointed Todd Combs to head the Strategic Investment Group, an initial $10 billion direct-equity allocation within its broader $1.5 trillion Security and Resiliency Initiative. The initiative targets lending and investments to support critical U.S. sectors such as defense, aerospace, healthcare, and energy.

Combs will focus on middle-market and large corporate clients aligned with the initiative’s resilience goals. He will report to Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon and serve as a special adviser to Dimon and the firm’s Operating Committee. Combs stepped off JPMorgan’s board effective immediately and will step down from his leadership roles at Berkshire Hathaway and GEICO.

Senior JPMorgan executives Doug Petno and Troy Rohrbaugh, co-CEOs of the Commercial & Investment Bank, and Mary Erdoes, CEO of Asset & Wealth Management, will collaborate with Combs on the initiative.

JPMorgan also announced an External Advisory Council to guide the initiative’s strategy and investment priorities. Chaired initially by Dimon, the council includes Jeff Bezos, retired General Chris Cavoli, Michael Dell, Ann Dunwoody, Jim Farley, Robert Gates, Alex Gorsky, Paul Nakasone, Condoleezza Rice, Paul Ryan, and Phebe Novakovic. The council will meet periodically to provide perspectives on risks and opportunities supporting the initiative’s long-term strategy.

Dimon said, “Todd Combs is one of the greatest investors and leaders I’ve known.”

Berkshire Hathaway Leadership Changes

Public reports said Berkshire Hathaway announced leadership changes concurrent with Combs’s departure. Adam Johnson, CEO of NetJets, was named president of consumer products, service, and retailing businesses while retaining his NetJets role. Charles Chang will succeed Mark Hamburg as senior vice president and chief financial officer effective June 1, 2026, with Hamburg planning to retire June 1, 2027. Michael O’Sullivan joined as Berkshire’s general counsel, coming from Snap and previously associated with law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson.

These moves precede Greg Abel’s scheduled succession as Berkshire CEO from Warren Buffett, consistent with the company’s succession plan.

Combs has been a longtime Berkshire investment manager, overseeing roughly $20 billion of the company’s capital, and served as GEICO’s CEO for about six years. His move to JPMorgan brings an executive experienced in managing large public-market equity allocations to lead the bank’s direct-equity investments under the Security and Resiliency Initiative.