A black retired NFL player claims bankers at J.P. Morgan Chase told him he was scaring employees because of his height and skin color.

Jimmy Kennedy, 38, suspected he was being treated differently by employees after struggling to become a 'private client' at the bank - a status that would get him travel discounts and other perks.

He began recording his conversations with bank staff, include one with a financial advisor who told him to go along with the alleged racist attitudes he was confronting when he was shopping around for a bank in Arizona.

'You're bigger than the average person, period. And you're also an African-American,' the employee, Charles Belton, who is black, told Kennedy, reports the New York Times.

'We're in Arizona. I don't have to tell you about what the demographics are in Arizona. They don't see people like you a lot'.

Jimmy Kennedy, 38, suspected early on that he was being treated differently by employees at J.P. Morgan Chase and began recording his interactions with the bank

His experience demonstrated the long-perceived culture of racism within American banking. While J.P. Morgan Chase and other banks claim they are hard at work reversing the tide of racism that has washed over their business, Kennedy's experience says otherwise

His experience demonstrated the long-perceived culture of racism within American banking, the Times reports.

With few black people represented in the top ranks of financial institutions, and even restitution paid to black employees for being isolated from white peers, Kennedy's treatment came as no surprise.

The National Bureau of Economic Research this year found that black mortgage borrowers were still charged higher interest rates. Black borrowers also were denied mortgages that would have been approved for whites, the research organization found, the Times reports.

While J.P. Morgan Chase and other banks claim they are hard at work reversing the tide of racism that has washed over their business, Kennedy's experience says otherwise.

Not only was Kennedy allegedly told he was too black, his initial financial advisor also complained he was a victim of racism and also flicked his recorder on his unsuspecting colleagues who might have normally passed off the allegations as made up, stemming from grievances.

A J.P. Morgan Chase spokeswoman said the bank was unaware of all the recordings and changed its position after they were revealed by the Times, leading to an executive being placed on leave amid an internal investigation.

The executive has resigned, reports the Times.

Kennedy had claimed he was comfortable with his first advisor, Ricardo Peters, and had slowly transferred $800,000 to the bank starting in 2018. Kennedy had come to expect 'private client' status because of the deposit, which comes with specific perks when depositors have $250,000 in the bank.

Peters, however, had already had his own run-in with alleged racism, telling the Times that his boss, Frank Venniro, had accused him of taking client files home in violation of bank policies. Peters denied the accusation and Venniro let it go when he was convinced the advisor was telling the truth.

Peters was still left feeling uneasy, because his managers were white, and might be inclined to treat him differently. Then he complained to the same boss that another advisor was trying to steal a client - a woman who was black and on a public housing assistance program known as Section 8 - who received $372,000 in a wrongful death settlement when her son died.

Venniro told Peters to back off because the woman wasn't worth the dispute.

'You've got somebody who's coming from Section 8, never had a nickel to spend, and now she's got $400,000,' Venniro said.

Use of the Section 8 reference has been known to imply a racial slur.

'What do you think's going to happen with that money? It's gone', Venniro said, not knowing that Peters too was recording his words, out of his concerns.'

'But I thought that's why we get involved,' Peters fired back at his boss.

Venniro said no.

Frank Venniro, who had been a supervisor overseeing one of Kennedy's advisors, was placed on leave by J.P. Morgan Chase admid an investigation. He has resigned from the bank, a spokeswoman confirmed

Kennedy had claimed he was comfortable with his first advisor, Ricardo Peters (pictured), and had slowly transferred $800,000 to J.P. Morgan Chase starting in 2018

'You're not investing a dime for this lady,' he said, suggesting the woman would spend all her money in a short time.

'This is not money she respects', he said. 'She didn't earn it'.

Venniro declined to comment when the Times reached out.

The bank's spokeswoman confirmed he was put on leave after the news outlet began asking questions and that he resigned on Thursday.

'Our employee used extraordinarily bad judgment and was wrong to suggest we couldn't help a customer,' the spokeswoman said.

She also said that Venniro knew the client was in subsidized housing, but didn't know her race.

In February of 2018, Peters found himself transferred from the Sun City West branch, to a less affluent location, which he said he perceived as another mistreatment over his skin color.

That's when he met Kennedy, a defensive tackle who had retired and moved to Phoenix after playing for five teams in the NFL. He even had played for the 2011 Super Bowl Champion New York Giants, after a well-publicized homecoming for the player who had grown up impoverished in Yonkers.

Kennedy retired and moved to Phoenix after playing for five teams in the NFL. He even had played for the 2011 Super Bowl Champion New York Giants, after a well-publicized homecoming for the player who had grown up impoverished in Yonkers

By the summer, Kennedy had started to transfer his assets to J.P. Morgan Chase. At the time, Peters, who was concerned he was being targeted by his bosses over his skin color, filed a complaint with the bank.

J.P. Morgan Chase also within a short time later agreed to pay $24 million in a class action suit brought on by other black employees who claimed they were discriminated against.

By October, however, Peters found himself being fired by Venniro, without proper explanation. 'I'm just given marching orders', the boss says in a recording.

The advisor filed a discrimination complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the civil rights division of the Arizona attorney general's office, accusing J.P. Morgan Chase of racial discrimination, reports the Times.

The bank denied the allegation and blamed Peters' sacking for giving credit for a new client to an employee who managers didn't think deserved it.

'We stand by our decision to terminate Peters,' the spokeswoman told the Times. 'The facts are indisputable'.

Meanwhile, Kennedy found some of his transactions were frozen or not carried out. In one case, $92,000 was held up instead of being invested, as Kennedy had instructed.

That's when Belton was assigned to work with the retired pro football player, a fellow black man, and when he was told he had not been assigned his perks as a 'private client,' he complained and even went to Venniro.

Belton warned him to not ever do that again.

Kennedy expected 'private client' status after he began depositing $800,000 into J.P. Morgan Chase, which comes with specific perks when depositors have $250,000 in the bank. When he was told he had not been assigned his perks , he complained and even went to Venniro

In a recording, the advisor asked Kennedy to think of the impression he was giving people at the bank. He was a large black man in Arizona and Venniro had been afraid to disclose that his application for the perks was deleted when Peters was fired.

He was better off dealing directly with Belton, the advisor told Kennedy, and not other employees.

'They're not going to say this, but I don't have the same level of intimidation that they have -- you know what I'm saying?' he told the retired pro football player, and 'not only being a former athlete but also being two black men'.

Kennedy's new advisor, Charles Belton, a fellow black man, warned him to not ever complain directly to his boss again. Kennedy was a large black man in Arizona and Venniro, who is white, had been afraid to disclose that his application for the perks was deleted

Referring to Venniro specifically, Belton added, 'You sit in front of him, you're like three times his size -- you feel what I'm saying? -- he already probably has his perception of how these interactions could go'.

Kennedy asked if racism was to blame. The advisor replied he didn't think 'any person at that level is dumb enough for it to be that blatant'.

In a recording, Kennedy's advisor asked him to think of the impression he was giving people at the bank. Kennedy asked if racism was to blame. The advisor replied he didn't think 'any person at that level is dumb enough for it to be that blatant'

'I don't have any reason to believe blatantly that he's that way. You feel what I'm saying? Now, whether there's some covert action? To be honest? I always err on the side of thinking that. You know, people that are not us probably have some form of prejudice toward us'.

Kennedy pulled his money from the bank and has filed a grievance with an industry watchdog.

'You stated that Mr. Belton informed you that our firm was prejudiced against you and intimidated by you because of your race,' the bank wrote him in response to the complaint.

'We found no evidence to substantiate your allegations'.