Wall Street moves fast. Sometimes, too fast. We just saw this play out with one of the biggest names in banking. Late in 2024, the news started trickling out that JPMorgan Chase discontinues Capital Connect platform, effectively pulling the plug on a digital experiment that many thought would redefine how startups get funded.
Honestly? It was a bit of a shocker.
When JPMorgan launched Capital Connect back in 2022, they weren't just trying to build a website. They were trying to build a bridge. The idea was to take the messy, "who-you-know" world of venture capital and turn it into something streamlined, digital, and data-driven. It promised to link founders directly with investors while providing the kind of benchmarking data that usually costs a fortune.
Then, suddenly, the website went dark.
The Quiet Death of a Digital Dream
Why did it happen? If you ask the folks at 270 Park Avenue, they’ll tell you it’s about a "strategic pivot." Basically, that's corporate speak for "it didn't work like we wanted it to."
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By May 2025, reports confirmed that the platform was officially dead. The bank started redirecting its 10,000+ innovation economy clients back to traditional relationship banking. You've probably heard this story before in fintech: a big bank tries to act like a nimble startup, builds a cool tool, and then realizes that at the end of the day, their clients just want to talk to a human being with a checkbook.
It's not that the venture market dried up. Far from it. In fact, JPMorgan's commitment to the "innovation economy" is supposedly stronger than ever. They have over 500 bankers dedicated to this space. But they’ve decided that a digital portal isn't the best way to serve a founder trying to raise a Series B.
What happened to the 200 employees?
Usually, when a project this big dies, people lose jobs. Surprisingly, that didn't happen here. JPMorgan redeployed the majority of the 200-person team—led by Michael Elanjian—into other parts of the global banking business. They're taking the "agentic AI" and digital infrastructure they built for Capital Connect and repurposing it for new, yet-to-be-announced ventures.
They aren't throwing the tech away. They're just changing the wrapper.
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Why JPMorgan Chase Discontinues Capital Connect Platform Now
Timing is everything. In 2026, the financial landscape looks nothing like it did in 2022. We are dealing with what JPMorgan’s own analysts call "The New Frontier": a mix of high-speed AI, global fragmentation, and sticky inflation.
Managing a niche platform for startup matchmaking started to look like a distraction.
- Relationship over Rubric: Startups are complex. A platform can give you data, but it can’t give you the nuanced advice a senior banker can offer during a market crunch.
- The Aumni Factor: JPMorgan acquired Aumni, a private market data firm. They realized that owning the data was more valuable than owning the matchmaking portal.
- Focus on Core Strengths: The bank is currently fighting a massive battle over "open banking" fees. They want to charge fintechs for accessing customer data. Managing their own "fintech-lite" platform like Capital Connect while fighting the rest of the fintech world was a weird look.
It’s kinda funny when you think about it. The bank realized that being a bank is actually their best competitive advantage. Who would've thought?
Real-World Impact for Founders
If you were one of the founders using Capital Connect to find your next lead investor, you aren't exactly left in the lurch. The bank has been very clear that ongoing fundraises are still being supported through traditional channels.
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But the "self-service" dream is over.
You can't just log in and find a VC anymore. You have to do it the old-fashioned way: grab a coffee, build a relationship, and hope your JPMorgan advisor has the right person in their Rolodex. For some, this feels like a step backward. For others, it’s a return to the "Fortress Balance Sheet" reliability that JPMorgan is famous for.
The Future of "Innovation Banking" in 2026
Is this the end of digital platforms at JPM? No way.
The bank is still spending billions—$4.7 billion in 2025 alone—on technology. They are just moving away from the "portal" model and toward "embedded" tools. They want their bankers to have better AI-driven insights so they can be more helpful to you, rather than giving you the tool to do it yourself.
We’re seeing a massive shift toward private credit too. In 2025, private credit reached nearly 20% of total deal financing. This shift requires heavy-duty human negotiation, not just a digital handshake on a platform.
Actionable Steps for Startups and Investors
If you were relying on the Capital Connect ecosystem, here is how you should pivot your strategy today:
- Double down on your Lead Banker: If you're a JPM client, stop looking for the "portal" and start bugging your Relationship Manager. They have the data from the defunct platform; make them use it for you.
- Leverage Aumni for Data: If you need the benchmarking tools that Capital Connect used to offer, look into Aumni. It's where the bank's real private market intelligence now lives.
- Watch the Secondary Markets: One of Capital Connect's goals was facilitating secondary trading. With the platform gone, look toward specialist firms like Hiive or Forge Global, as JPMorgan has effectively exited the "self-serve" secondary space.
- Prepare for "Relationship 2.0": Expect your bankers to be more tech-enabled. They might be using the "agentic models" developed by the old Capital Connect team to find you a match, even if you can't see the software yourself.
The fact that JPMorgan Chase discontinues Capital Connect platform doesn't mean they're quitting the startup game. It just means the "move fast and break things" era of bank-led fintech is evolving into something more calculated. They're going back to what they do best: being the biggest, most connected bank on the planet, just with better AI under the hood.
Keep an eye on their next move. Word on the street is that the "repurposed" infrastructure will surface in a new wealth management tool later this year.