Despite passing Goldman Sachs (GS) last year as the largest bank in raw materials revenues, JP Morgan Chase (JPM) is selling off its physical commodities until...

Despite passing Goldman Sachs (GS) last year as the largest bank in raw materials revenues, JP Morgan Chase (JPM) is selling off its physical commodities until to Mercuria Energy for $3.5 billion. The unit has $3.3 billion in assets and generates $750 million in annual operating profits. Nevertheless, big banks are shedding commodities exposure as revenue has been declining. Moreover, there's a possibility the Fed won't allow insured lenders to be in the physical commodity business due to risks involved. Regulators are also concerned that banks have too much power in controlling commodity prices when they own the raw materials. It's taking time, but the 2009 financial crisis is slowly resulting in banks becoming banks again, focusing on more traditional banking activities such as lending and investment banking. (VIEW LINK)