JPMorgan Chase is bringing on Tahir Zafar, the international head of AI strategy at Nomura Holdings, as its new head of AI strategy. Zafar will join around July 2026 after completing a period of gardening leave.

The hire is notable for a few reasons. It marks JPMorgan’s second senior poach from Nomura’s AI division in less than a year, following the recruitment of Deep Thomas in August 2025.

A pattern, not a coincidence

Zafar joined Nomura in late 2023 and climbed quickly, earning the title of international head of AI strategy by March 2025. Based in Singapore, he built his career through stints at PwC and Accenture, where he advised major banking institutions on digital transformation. He holds degrees in Computer Science and an MBA from the University of Oxford.

His public commentary has focused on responsible AI usage in financial services, a topic that sounds boring until you remember that regulators are increasingly scrutinizing how banks deploy automated decision-making.

Dimon’s AI offensive

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has been vocal about the transformative potential of artificial intelligence across the bank’s operations. The hiring of Zafar aligns directly with Dimon’s stated strategy of recruiting top AI specialists to enhance productivity and service delivery.

Zafar’s background spans both the technical side, with a computer science foundation, and the business side, with consulting experience advising C-suite executives at major financial institutions.

What this means for investors

For Nomura, losing two senior AI strategists to the same competitor raises questions about retention and compensation structures in its technology division.

Interestingly, Zafar has a background in blockchain and crypto topics dating back to writings from 2017, though his role at JPMorgan will likely center on broader AI strategy across business lines rather than digital assets specifically.