Not long ago I walked into a local branch of my bank - the 13th largest bank in the United States based on consolidated banking assets, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) second-quarter 2015 data.
I wanted to cash a check for a few thousand dollars. It was a business check made out to cash; it was my business account and there was plenty of money in it.
No big deal - happens every day, right?
Well, what happened next was downright scary. And I’ll tell you exactly what happened because it has profound implications for every American.
That's because it means capital controls, courtesy of the government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, could be right around the corner. They're already in effect in some form.
That means you might not be able to get the money you want out of an ATM. You might not be able to cash a check when you have plenty of money in your account. Or worse... your bank could take your deposited cash and convert it to shares of stock in that bank.
In other words, if you think you'll always be able to get your money out of your bank, you're wrong.
So, here's what happened to me at the teller's window...
It Started Normally Enough
When I went to cash the check, a routine activity that must happen tens of millions of times every day in the United States, the woman behind the big, thick glass partition said, "I'm sorry. I can't cash this for you."
"Pardon me," I said. "What do you mean you can't cash that?"
She replied matter-of-factly, "I don't know you."
"You don't know me because you're new here," I replied. "Please get the branch manager," I requested politely.
"I'll call her, but you'll have to fill out this form," she told me as she reached into a drawer under the counter.
Just then the branch manager came over to the teller inside the cage. "Hi Mr. Gilani, is there a problem?" she asked.
"Yes, there is a problem," I replied. "I'm trying to cash a check and first this young lady said she didn't know me and couldn't cash the check, then she said I'd have to fill out some forms to get my money out. What's going on?"
The manager told me there were some "new rules" they had to follow. She acknowledged she knew me, telling the teller I was okay, but told me I'd still have to fill out the form.
"I am not filling out any form ever to take my money out of my account," I stated. "Is that a federal law or is that this bank's idea of customer service?"
"It's just what we have to do now," the manager replied.
So I looked at her as if to say, "Really? You're not going to tell me why I have to fill out a form to take cash out of my account?"
Then I said, very calmly, "I'm sorry - and I don't want to be a jerk - but if you don't cash this check or if I'm ever asked to fill out a form again when I cash a check, I'll close all my accounts here."
I got my cash... and a seriously creepy feeling.
No one - no one - has ever been able to tell me why the teller wouldn't cash my check, not even those friends of mine who actually own banks. The best answer I got was: It was a new teller and she probably didn't understand the "SARs rules" and figured she'd better not cash the check, in case she got in trouble.
Which begs the question, what are SARs?
They are Suspicious Activity Reports, and according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) website...
"A bank shall file a suspicious activity report with the appropriate federal law enforcement agencies and the Department of the Treasury, in accordance with the form's instructions, by sending a completed suspicious activity report to FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) in the following circumstances:
- Insider abuse involving any amount.
- Transactions aggregating $5,000 or more where a suspect can be identified.
- Transactions aggregating $25,000 or more regardless of potential suspects.
- Transactions aggregating $5,000 or more that involve potential money laundering or violations of the Bank Secrecy Act."
Banks fill out these reports regularly. They have to... or else...
You see, according to a post on the well-respected ZeroHedge.com site, "Banks have minimum quotas of SARs they need to fill out and submit to the federal government. If they don't file enough SARs, they can be fined. They can lose their banking charter. And yes, bank executives and directors can even be imprisoned for noncompliance."
As annoyed as I was with the difficulty of getting my money out of my account (and the teller no doubt filing a SAR on me), at least I was able to get my money.
But that can change.
There are two scenarios where depositors could either be restricted from withdrawing their cash or have their deposits confiscated and converted into bank stock shares.
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About the Author
Shah Gilani boasts a financial pedigree unlike any other. He ran his first hedge fund in 1982 from his seat on the floor of the Chicago Board of Options Exchange. When options on the Standard & Poor's 100 began trading on March 11, 1983, Shah worked in "the pit" as a market maker.
The work he did laid the foundation for what would later become the VIX - to this day one of the most widely used indicators worldwide. After leaving Chicago to run the futures and options division of the British banking giant Lloyd's TSB, Shah moved up to Roosevelt & Cross Inc., an old-line New York boutique firm. There he originated and ran a packaged fixed-income trading desk, and established that company's "listed" and OTC trading desks.
Shah founded a second hedge fund in 1999, which he ran until 2003.
Shah's vast network of contacts includes the biggest players on Wall Street and in international finance. These contacts give him the real story - when others only get what the investment banks want them to see.
Today, as editor of Hyperdrive Portfolio, Shah presents his legion of subscribers with massive profit opportunities that result from paradigm shifts in the way we work, play, and live.
Shah is a frequent guest on CNBC, Forbes, and MarketWatch, and you can catch him every week on Fox Business's Varney & Co.
I suspect it's more likely that you were racially profiled rather than there exists some secret plan to seize all bank accounts.
You also ignore the existence of the FDIC. The Federal Government insures all deposits up to $250,000 in member banks.
Really, isn't enough that one of your colleagues has been predicting an immanent, disastrous, collapse in the economy for a couple of years now? Do you have to join in?
it's not a "secret" plan. the regulations cited exist. go try to take $6000 cash out of your bank. it's your money except you can't have it. the FDIC might have .02-.03 for every dollar "insured".
Not only can you have trouble when you try to withdraw $6000. Just have $6000 of your own money on your person without an explanation that satisfies the authorities, read that thieves. You will be parted from it because they think your possession of it is "suspicious." Good luck on trying to get it back.
curious…are credit unions susceptible to these same arbitrary 'rules' ?
$6,000.00? try taking out $4,000.00 and see what happens.
So where are you parking your $$$ after closing your bank accounts?
Hello, the F in FDIC means Federal. It can be told what, when, where, how to operate by several Federal agencies, such as Treasury to name just one. Of course it's not 'fair' but that's part of learning what is really going on.
I'm not sure the FDIC is quite the security blanket you think it is.
Currently the FDIC has 66 billion in assets guaranteeing 10.4 trillion on deposit. If you are going to bet on them you might consider using a small insolvent bank that would be amongst the first to get it's members covered.
About the FDIC's ability to fully insure all bank-account-deposits for "up tp $250,000", may I suggest that if you do a simple internet-search on the term "does the fdic have enough money", you will find loads of reports that say that in the event of a widespread crash, the the FDIC will NOT have the ability to do that.
you earned the money, so you think it is yours. so far from reality. you did not make, create, or print it. it is not your money. never has been, never will be. you don't own it. should try to understand this soon as you can
To Dbtheonly, I am white & had same thing happen as Shah. I also believe we are about to be robbed by our crooked politicians, you know the ones with mean, nasty attitudes like yours. Only you'll be on their hit list just like everyone else, white, black, yellow, we'll all be in it together, but thanks to this sites heads-up maybe we can be more prepared than some. It can't hurt & it might help. Thank you Shah for helping enlighten us in so many ways.
don't be so naiv
Mr. Gilani, I am one off the very few that believes this can happen.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but any money in the banks system, CD's, personal and business checking, money markets, etc. are in danger. Even cash sitting in brokerage accounts not yet invested could be scooped away.
I'm just a stupid carpenter, but I see painful times ahead, even for those like me who think they are prepared. This government has proven they are capable of anything.
Thank you sir for what you do.
I would like to know when the bank account is closed what to do with the money ? Any suggestions .
I put my money mainly in silver bullion. I keep no money in the bank. Why would you. I pay in cash for everything and I like getting coins back which I hoard too.
I like your thinking but I live in a smalltown anddecided to not use my debit card anymore. I ran into problems trying to use cash and checks. hospital wouldn't let me pay my bill in cash many small stores wont except checks and car rental agencies are refusing to allow me to pay with cash and I have also ran into problems with getting even 3000 cash out of my account excuse being I would reduce their cash supply to much so I have to submit a request and come back in three days and my debit card has a restriction of only able to get 200 at a time and only 500 per day but I still don't like the ideal of having cash on me because I have been informed by a police officer i know that if I am stopped and have over 3000 cash it will most likely be confiscated as suspicious money
I think we can call this "The Revenge of Frankendoodie."
I have been hearing similar stories of the possibility of any of these events happening, but now that we have confirmed evidence that it did happen, I would prefer that all the people that yell at us for dreaming up these "conspiracy theories" would get a life. Once it happens, it's no longer "theory"; it is now truth. This is also another reason you should hope that America doesn't become a cashless society.
Does this same scenario apply to brokerage accounts with institutions such as Fidelity, Ameritrade, etc.
Hi Shah,
I've heard about this sort of thing happening but I don't think we ever thought it would 'really' happen. I'm living in Australia and wonder whether you think this sort of thing could happen here? I have no idea whether our laws have been changed in this regard to accommodate the govt like yours have in the US but, if they have, it would be good to put the word out so I can make others more aware.
Thank you so much for your all your truth!
Kindest Regards,
Carol
Carol,
It can happen in Australia, although the first $250,000 you hold in each bank is guaranteed by the Australian Government. What the Oz government is more likely to do is take your superannuation and pay you a pension from it instead of leaving it under your control.
Here is someone else BESIDES Alex Jones, a financial market expert, speaking out publicly and sounding the alarm. Maybe Alex isn't such a crackpot after all? Shame on anyone for not heeding these warnings.
This is illegal…the bank is my debtor…I am the creditor…
A first year law student can see this….
yes but when you deposit your money you become an unsecured creditor like a CC ;)
Sorry, I forgot to mention I am in Australia too.
I am pretty sure Hockey had this very provision in his budget
and it was passed by the Senate.
@dbtheonly, no it's not racial profiling, it's SOP for banks, compounded by the new teller. Mr. Gilani is correct that the teller most likely filled out the form after he left, her error was asking him to fill it out himself, she shouldn't have alerted him that she was doing so. If the cash withdrawals were a habit of his, he probably has many SARs under his name already.
I've worked for a bank holding company (whose name would be recognized in most of the country) for over 20 years, and even though I don't work in a branch, all workers are required to complete a plethora of training every year covering regulatory topics (I think I take about 30 classes/year even though none of them cover what my job functions are).
The SAR is whatever someone deems is suspicious, and these days, cash is suspicious and subversive as the govt has a harder time tracking cash. They would really rather do away with cash so that every transaction can be tracked and taxed – tracked to build a profile of you, taxed to feed itself for even more growth.
@Don, yes, these regs apply in one form or another to all financial institutions.
Our government distrusts its citizens.
Thats funny, I dont trust my government
I sold a car a couple of years ago for $11,000. Put the money into my savings account & thought no more of it. My wife has a job that requires a security clearance & this transaction raised a red flag. She was required to describe in detail why the money was deposited.
One of the commenters asked if this sort of "bail-in" could happen with brokerage accounts. This reminded me of a notification I received several years ago from my mutual fund firm that indicated that funds could be taken from one fund to service emergency liquidity needs of another.
In another case, I was in the process of setting up my online banking with my long time TBTF bank and this process led me to the typical "terms and conditions" acceptance or rejection. In reading the terms and conditions it stated that funds could be taken from any account I owned to satisfy obligations of any other account. So, for instance, my checking account could be tapped to pay off a mortgage or credit card balance.
I guess you could say its all in the fine print…
Yes please check my account and credit card payment
This happened to me. I was going to buy a truck from private party. I when to the bank and wanted to with draw 10,000. The bank manager told me that I would have to fill out these forms and they would order the cash and it would be a couple of days. I asked what if i wanted more money and they said that large withdrawals could be denied because of new banking laws. So what is the answer? If I go to all cash, I know some banks won't let you even pay a mortgage or car payment with cash (you must have a bank account). This happened in Feb 2015. It seems that it is all going to blowup
I think you open several accountas ar other institutions: preferably credit unions, and have your money transferred out to each new institution. Then withdraw and get a home safe. If 'negative interest rates' really will become a reality: why would you keep it in a bank. They are just as ;likely to steal it as from a home break in. Buy 10% of your cash worth in gold and silver to feel 'safe'. With china and Russia BUYING UP GOLD: EVEN IN western society cashless economy:
Good comment.
The same thing happened to me at BOA. It was THEIR cashier's check.
I too share your concern. Where can one place their investments and not be at risk? I'm not so sure stocks, bonds, etc are any safer than bank deposits. What hard assets do you recommend? How can these assets be protected from the over-reaching hand of government. When our government becomes desperate, they will do anything. That is the basis for how we have to plan.
WELL…. how did you think The Government got this done…. HECK you put those idiots and crooks ( excuse me Legally positioned to make themselves rich) politicians in office!!!
Now you can actually see why they spend so much omney getting elected!!!!
By the way… where are you moving your money to??? try cashing a Gve check when retired without an account in a bank to get the money??? Cost to cash at exchange 10-35% ????
So, how does one pull all or most of his cash out out of a bank if you can barely get a few thousand dollars?
Last week I went to UNION bank to get $8000 cash to buy car. I had to go back the next day as they had not enough on hand, they said. Thought maybe I would get it in YEN.
bettey in a Canadian put your money ina canadian bank..we have different laws up here
How about credit unions? Do they have the same regulations? Can I get my money out of them? I know the credit unions are not guaranteed by FDID but by a different credit union insurance.
Could you please tell us what bank and what branch this alleged "incident" happened in?
I do see more rules regulations and restrictions being placed on the customers in the banks. It is very disturbing. What are the options then? How do you recommend one keep their cash, if safe deposit boxes are out?
Mr. Shah Gilani you said that you are closing your bank accounts, what are your solutions personally that you are doing? You have a business, how are you operating it with out bank accounts? You did not offer any concrete ideas?
What about taking out less than $5000 at a time in Travelers Checks?
I use TD Bank which is really a Canadian Bank here in the US. How would I transfer some of my bank account to Canada?
Closing my bank account sounds great, BUT what do I do with my Direct
Deposit checks [retirement and social security] each month ???? They don't
pay in rupies or cash. Huh?
that's simple…..just write a check (s) about same amount shortly thereafter for similar amounts. The idea is to maintain minimum risk balances. Or write checks to other accounts ( credit union secondary accts. or persons/places of trust..) Part of staying out of historical surveillance by the "feds" is to have kept a minimal foot print many years before. So systematically withdraw from system via gradual drafts slightly more than usual…..such that it looks like some ever-increasing costs of living/medical insurance increases (real!), blah, blah….you dont want to do anything large enough to draw that "teller alert status". And mix tellers up all the time too so one alone doesn't get to know your history ( people forget a lot in a few days, let alone weeks.) Example: ever see those crime drama TV shows where a suspect is asked to account/remember where he/she was certain hours/minutes 6 days earlier? Now, ask yourself the same question: where were you between 3:00 pm and 4:30 pm last thurs. (6 days earlier..) ? How many of us can remember-without a pretty well-maintained daytimer- well enough to answer? And the really big question: can you provide anyone/witness that can back up your whereabouts claim??? Are THEY then even gonna remember?? ( now the-your- "truth" is in THEIR hands/memory ability)…. see what i mean?
very informative article and makes me want to go back to td bank with my ssi deposits.!
The US govt has been changing the banking landscape and turning financial institutions into cops for many years. The public is just starting to see how all the regulations and new laws are impacting how banks operate. I work in one of the largest banks in the US and we spend more time working on the regulations than making loans or taking deposits. Do I keep my money in a bank? I keep as little as necessary to operate. Physical assets are the best way to manage for what's about to come.
I live in Europe. I am planning to transfer money to Interactive Brokers.
Bad idea ?? Correct if I am wrong, but isnt IB a Canadian broker under Canadian law and rules ?
Sorry Mr Isager – IB is headquartered in Greenwich CONNECTICUT!
https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/index.php?f=564&ns=T – at very bottom of this page is a list of their entities.
There is a Canada-based subsidiary (which might be independent enough for a fair degree of safety from predation by U.S.). I too had mistakenly believed IB to be (completely) Canada based. Despite that disappointment, I've been a very satisfied IB client for about 6 years now.
But not sure that Canada will be all that much safer for one's financial assets down the road – Canada is emulating more & more of its southern neighbor's wicked fiscal & monetary policies.
It's getting harder & harder to find safe places for one's financial assets. Perhaps Hong Kong? or Singapore?
Will
Silver Savior & Fred Smith,
Where can I buy silver bullions & acquire physical assets? Thank you
I have had this occur to me. I went to my bank to remove $3000. for home painting contractor and was told about form. I refused to sign anything and told them I would clear account and tell the owner(small local bank) why. She gave me the cash. I went to main branch and asked about the law and the bank owners told me the couldn't verify or decline due to bank policies. I have know the owners for many years and now it' different how they act towards me. Like I am the nut who don't trust them. Congress has thrown around the idea of nationalizing retirement accounts. Beware.
When taking your money out "in smaller amounts," be careful not to run afoul of the federal 'structured withdrawal' law. Look it up. Withdrawing over a certain amount over time could get you charged with trying to evade the withdrawal disclosure law. Whether or not you can prove your withdrawals were for legitimate reasons does NOT matter. Fed Pokey Wants You!
So is it correct that money in a business checking account is no safer from confiscation than money in a savings account?
If you think US is unique you are under informed. Actually it is worse in EU. Not only banks asks questions but they can close your account in 24 hours based on nothing more than a suspicious activity, like receiving funds from someone your business has never before received funds from. One of my business friends got his account in Sweden closed because he received funds from several private individuals he never done business with before. How do you operate a company without a checking account?
I'm from Canada.
I've never had issues withdrawing nor depositing multiple thousands of $'s at a time. Sometimes they will tell me they may not have enough on hand, & to call them next time in advance… but I'd rather just go to 2 different branches if I really need the cash.
I was told that by law, any amt over $9,999 being moved around has to be reported to police, so I just did 2 transactions of $6K & $6K.
Maybe income is lower in US, so the total amt being moved without getting flagged is lower, but I've never been asked to fill out a form.
We are headed for 100% digital cash. Paper and coin will be eliminated. Then we will 100% at their mercy. It does not take a genius to figure the trend that is taking place. Negative interest rates, no problem, type a code in, done, your "currency" took a haircut. You are complaining about the government, no problem, your account is frozen, you cannot transact anything. Hitler would have done a tap dance if he had this power.
What my about putting your money in stocks that pay dividends like At&T "O"? Where would you suggest that would be safe?
All brokerage accounts will be FROZEN as well as your personal bank accounts . " ICE 9 " according to Jim Rickards can be implemented any day now or soon thereafter . The Rothschild's will close all the banks everywhere with the power they gave themselves over the last few years preparing for the day they STEAL all of OUR money's which will happen in a heartbeat time wise . One Friday afternoon without prior warning they will close the banks stating the system has acquired a virus and they will open again on Monday . Unfortunately for all of us SAPS they will not open again . The dollar will have crashed at this point and become worthless and EVERYTHING you thought you had will be GONE forever . When they do open again you will be worthless and offered the Chinese Yuan as the worlds new reserve currency instead of the USD . All chaos produced by these actions orchestrated by the Elites will be dealt with by the New World Police or U.N. troops both of which will NOT hesitate at all to shoot you if they get a chance .Say hello to the New Draconian enslavement of Mankind . We are all screwed ROYALLY at this point when it inevitably occurs soon ( Some say it will be years for this to come about but , I believe they are dead wrong and this will occur a lot sooner than you think ) . The Elites will then let all of us fight it out till the Death to further U.N. Agenda's 21 and 30 which states basically that they will reduce the World population to 500,000 people no matter what . The U.N. is NOBODY'S friend and everybody's ENEMY today and most sheeple don't have a clue or care about any of this . Those U.N. wacko's have ulterior motives regarding our lives and the sovereignty of the United States existence . The New World Order , coming to a neighborhood near you soon whether you like it or not !!! These dictators will rule us all even more than they already do with an IRON FIST clamped down hard enough to cement our demise . The Elites have been planning this crap for a long, long time my friends and the time is on their side . These are definitely SAD TIMES indeed ahead produced by the Greediest Illuminati clowns who have this sick idea that they are GODS far above the rest of us shmucks . All the violence and World Wars over the last 1500 years or so are a DIRECT result of these creeps' controlling interference running our lives for us that don't know any better , so they think . The future generations are in a world of hurt people . WAKE UP and SMELL THE COFFEE !!!!! They have truly taken control of our fates and have stolen them along with all our wealth right under our noses using our own system against us . Diabolically Clever plan indeed that Satan himself couldn't have cooked up . Hear me now and believe me later .
Tell me what is mentioned by moderation ! As a member of money map press and a 44yr atty and a former IRS revenue officer I do not know what you mean by using the term!
To dbtheonly: others have offered useful comments, and I'm sure you could do the same if you tried.
To those who wanted Mr Gilani to list steps folks could use to protect themselves from the theft process he warns against: might there be some possibility that merely listing such steps would itself result in prosecution?
My comment regarding the article is that the truly wealthy may have the legal, technical, and political resources sufficient to take effective defensive action with impunity. The impecunious have little reason to worry about withdrawal limits because their account balances would present no problem. The great middle between these two classes would be most affected and would have the least means of defense. Most of us in that class will have little protection and would be the most likely to fall afoul of the traps in the law or in the regs. Traps there surely are. I have hardly the least expectation I would be able to figure out a safe way to proceed. This is a pessimistic view, admittedly. It probably is realistic, though. But please do not assume that this comment amounts to a request for anybody to post answers such as lists of protective steps. Doing that without careful wording would be inadvisable, I believe. Just my opinion.
the government has setup rules to prevent you from withdralling your money for when they decide to take it for the imf. They will proubly take 40 percent. besides the government says its not your money once you give it to the bank you own shares in the bank.
If a bank closing or bail-in occurs, I will send a check to the IRS and then latter ask for the return of over payment of taxes.
What kind of useless article is this? What is the point of an article entitled: "Why I'm closing my bank accounts" if there is no advice on what to do next?
When I went to college I was taught that if I had to tell my boss about a problem I should also take some possible solutions into the meeting with me. This article describes hops between anecdotes in EUR and the US of people having their money unceremoniously separated from them then offers no alternative for what to do with the money. If it was at least a scam I could dismiss it and move on but this is the worst type of prattle, scaring people and not telling them a way out. What a total waste of precious time, which, btw, the author of course adds time pressure to the situation by saying we must act soon. Act soon and do what?
Mark,
you poor thing you.. would you rather have us not tell you theres no Santa Claus? …. What YOU do with this info is personal. Would if he doesnt know where to put your money? He shouldnt sound the alarm?
Where is the rest of this article???
The article ends with "There are two scenarios where depositors could either be restricted from withdrawing their cash or have their deposits confiscated and converted into bank stock shares."
However, the article never states what these two scenarios are.
The two are included within the sentence.
1.Limitations on your cash withdrawals.
2.Your account is converted into shares of the Bank. (Rendering you with zilch when the bank stocks tank.)
It is up to you to find out what policies your bank implements.
The reason why the FDIC will not replenishing money confiscated in a Bail-In is that a depositors money has been converted to stock in the new recapitalized bank built on the ashes of the old failing bank. And here is the clever trick the new Bail-In laws take advantage of – the FDIC only insures cash accounts not equity accounts. Now since your money has been converted to stock it no longer is the pervue of the FDIC and they are off the hook.
If the govt can confiscate my deposits, is there anywhere safe to deposit my money so I can pay bills, etc ?? What about a credit union? I don't think they participate in the derivatives market.
In 1933, the U.S. government forbid the hoarding gold coin, bullion and gold certificates, and people had to redeem them for cash or risk a fine or imprisonment. What is to say this couldn't happen again? Google it or search Executive Order 6102 on Wikipedia for more info.
Great Article. I loved the specifics , Does someone know if my business might be able to get ahold of a template JPMorgan Chase Account Closing Form version to complete ?
Then what will you do when using your silver or gold for purchases is deemed suspicious as well?
You are mistaken about the U.S government not being able to come after gold holdings, it's already happened before under Roosevelt.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Order_6102
Yes, they could come after gold again but it's very unlikely since they have severed all the links to gold backing the worthless US dollar. Times have changed in that regard.
Good afternoon Shah,
Yes you are correct, capital controls are in place in European Banks including the UK. Regulations were passed (care of the EU) quite a while back which effectively mean (Banks can keep your Money) as you said in your article.
The EU bail-in regulations are extremely disturbing since they are in the national language of the country concerned. But more importantly the banks terms and conditions are as well as documentation for account holders. Meaning that other countries nationals (living or working in the country) – (have to sign accounts documents ETC in a language they cannot read understand or speak (They have no choice) No-one can buy services or goods pay utilities or exchange money, In the European Union without a bank account and documentation from national authorities.
This is the EU the British people are hoping to leave. Before the EU collapses and steals everyones money to prop up huge corporations Insurance giants and the to big to fail banks. Who bust the Worlds Economy.
Your money in a bank is not safe (never has been) check for yourself.
Gordan
One thing is clear: What to do about it? Of the responses above, including Mr. Gilani's, there was not a single solution. We are all straw men, moving in the direction the wind blows. Money? What about water? How long can we survive without it? The country IS divided, but that is superficial because in the end getting in one's car, drawing money out from the bank, are not solutions. Everything is tightly woven in the economy; inter-dependency internationally. The media, minus the Fairness Doctrine that Reagan repealed, is not required to present both sides. (Notice talk radio these days.) This one issue CAN BE resolved by reinstating the law. How about de-regulation which took power away from the commons? In terms of utilities, we can regain public (the commons) utilities and water by law instead of being controlled by company execs. not living in the community (or state for that matter). There are lots of CAN DO if we look for them. The current situation based on FEAR is precisely how dictators become popular. It is when citizens are content in trusting corporations which cannot function without the banks aka Treasury, President, and locally elected to do their jobs. The population is effectively controlled by media, improper education, and the end result is division and not commonality; hatred instead of discourse; and most importantly, and the nobility of Europe knows this: divided and conquered. Sounds familiar? It is each person's responsibility to read and educate one's self. How about going to a public library? Or the local college or university. Amazing stuff! Gold, Silver? Great idea. At the end of the war the nobility in Germany gave to the potato farmer their silver and gold for sacks of potatoes. (I learned this first-hand stationed there while the wise ones were alive.) The top-down corporate and political climate has proven itself incompetent; it starts locally–bottom-top. Start educating yourself. It like gold, but I cannot eat it, nor drink it like water.
Spread your assets into many banks in smaller accounts for one. Slowly withdraw small amounts for placing in a safe in a secure location Diversify into investments such as gld, a gold etf. buy some dividend paying stocks like att. Invest in world dominators such as coca cola, hershey, exxon bp, walmart, etc. Purchase some real extate, rental property, or raw land. There are countless places to place your assets, you may lose some in dire times, but you will still maintain a large portion. Just never put all your eggs in one basket, an ageless adage.
Credit Unions don't protect you from this but it is not universal. I have my main CC in VA and a local one in MD. The MD one wanted me to fill out a form, which I refused but the manager had me sign one that said taking out $3000 was a risk and that I understood the risk. The one in VA I did not ask, even thought it was more money. Go figure.
From "another lifetime", I was taught that you need to have more than one "life". One is a "legend" lived in plain sight of everyone where you do nothing to draw attention of your adversaries. Earn and spend no more than your legend allows. Have no more in the bank than what your legend allows. Be the person your legend describes. In other words, hide in plain sight and keep all your lives separate; Do nothing that can connect one to the other.
The second "life" needs to have a skill with a persistent value, one that is needed by as many people as possible. I suggest craft skills where you produce timeless, necessary things that people, including yourself, will always need. Think: water, food, clothing, shelter, transportation. What can you make, supply, or repair? Concentrate on the critical necessities first, and do not forget or neglect the spiritual needs of others or yourself. Be open to considering novel ways of exchanging value – before banks in the colonies there were several forms of "money". Look for non-perishable, persistent ways to store or exchange value that would appear worthless to your adversaries. Choose your skills wisely and start now. Hopefully you will have the tools, experience, and reputation to keep a low profile – all you will need is word of mouth advertising.
Do the problem that exist in banks where one day banks might take all your money, do you think that problem exist in credit unions?