“I don’t know whether I am the right guy for the job,” Daniel Pinto told me in an interview nearly 10 years ago. He was referring to the chances that he would one day take over from Jamie Dimon as chief executive of JPMorgan Chase. It turns out Pinto’s doubts were well-founded.

The news that Pinto is stepping down as Dimon’s number two is hardly unexpected. The softly-spoken Argentinian has been Dimon’s loyal lieutenant for years and was the designated successor if the boss was “hit by a bus”. But close observers have long thought it unlikely he would get the top job in any other circumstances. It seemed much more probable that having spent several years as president and chief operating officer he would step down in due course.