JPMorgan culling First Republic Bank’s personal credit lines – The Information

(Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:) has told customers with personal credit lines at First Republic Bank (OTC:) that it will no longer offer those when they come up for renewal, The Information reported on Thursday, citing correspondence it had viewed.

The affected clients are being offered the option to transform their revolving credit lines into fixed-term loans at the same rate for a period of up to five years, the report said, adding First Republic is also asking customers if they would prefer to pay off their credit lines.

First Republic’s business model was to lure high net-worth customers with preferential rates on mortgages and loans.

JPMorgan did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Regulators seized First Republic and sold its assets to JPMorgan in early May, in their move to resolve the largest U.S. bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis.

First Republic was among regional U.S. lenders most battered by a crisis in confidence in the banking sector in March, when depositors fled en masse, spooked by the collapse of two mid-sized banking rivals.