Most people assume the cagey Jamie Dimon is angling to make another purchase, specifically one to build the retail-bank side of the firm. The rumors are heavy regarding several companies, notably SunTrust with its strong Southern footprint and troubled Washington Mutual. Both are, ahem, attractively priced right now. Wachovia may also be a candidate for some kind of a deal. JPMorgan Chase is one of the few large banks well positioned to make deals right now. Citigroup has numerous issues to deal with, including capital troubles, and Bank of America has it hands full with the tricky Countrywide integration, so Dimon can afford to be choosy. Or can he?  CNNmoney.com notes that a possible accounting change forcing banks to add off-balance sheet assets to their balance sheets could make it much harder to do a deal. So we may see a deal soon--or not at all.  

For more:
- here's the CNNmoney.com article

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