JPMorgan Chase is moving swiftly to retain Bear Stearns’ top performing bankers and brokers even though it has not yet received shareholder approval for its takeover of the beleaguered bank, according to people close to the situation.

JPMorgan, which agreed on Sunday to buy Bear for $2 per share to save it from a bankruptcy filing, is preparing to deliver retention package offers for top Bear employees as soon as today, these people said.