WASHINGTON (CBS) -- The head of the largest bank in the U.S. went to Washington Wednesday to answer questions about bad bets that turned into billions in losses. He called it an isolated incident and said some executives may have their pay taken back.
Capitol police escorted protesters out of the hearing room where the CEO of JP Morgan Chase came to explain how his bank lost more than $2 billion on risky trades.
Jamie Dimon apologized, but said he wants Congress to put it in perspective. He says, "No client, customer or taxpayer money was impacted by this incident."
Senators asked Dimon why he was pointing the finger at the bank's investing unit. Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley says, "Shouldn't you take personal responsibility since they were following the game plan that you personally laid out?" Dimon responds, "That's why I'm here. We made a mistake, I'm absolutely responsible, the buck stops with me."
Dimon did say Chase will probably take pay back from senior executives involved in the risky trades.
The hearing comes as Congress finalizes new banking regulations including the so-called Volcker rule designed to prevent banks from making risky trades for their own profit. Dimon says, "It hasn't been written yet. It very well, may have stopped parts of what this portfolio morphed into."
Lawmakers are trying to get a handle on whether big banks are still a big risk to the country's financial system. Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker says, "What would you do to make our system safer?" Dimon responds, "The biggest disappointment I've had is that we never actually sat down, republicans, democrats, businesses and had real detailed conversation about what went wrong? What needs to be fixed?"
Dimon insisted there are some parts of stricter regulation that he does support. The Volcker rule is supposed to take effect next month, but banks have two years to fully comply.