IS IT SAFE?

While commercial banks are the most common institutions used by individuals and businesses for storing money, they offer less privacy and protection than the "cash and carry" method, (Hall, 2006) of converting checks into cash. Neither businesses nor individuals are safe from government-related bank account and asset seizures, (Hall, 2007) , (Rajter, 2007) and banks and bankers-domestic and foreign, (Barber, 2007) cooperate fully with government agency confiscations with the exception of a very few jurisdictions and these succumb, (Hill, 1998) when pressured or given "information" necessary to meet the criteria for "legal" bank account seizures.

CHECK CASHING STORES

Businesses and individuals may be well served by utilizing check cashing stores for safety and protection from government money confiscations.

While the fees charged by these businesses are typically between two and five percent, (Hall, 2006) the use of a check cashing store eliminates the possibility of the failure of a business caused by the loss of capital when a bank account is stolen. Businesses go out of business, (Hall, 2007), (Rajter, 2007) when government agencies freeze and seize money and property. Individuals go bankrupt when bank accounts and assets are stolen. Further, resources for the anonymous storage of cash, (Hall, 2006) are available and offer "banking" secrecy for U.S.A. and offshore residents.

Though these stores may appear to be expensive, businesses build the cost of clearing checks into their cost of doing business and pass these costs along to their customers. Individuals avoid the possibility of losing their principal through bank failures and government agency seizures through the use of check cashing stores.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

The service offered to customers by check cashing stores exceeds that offered by banks-in the opinion of this writer.

The immediate conversion of checks into cash is the primary service offered by these businesses. Additionally, they sell money orders, offer debit cards for sale, provide ATM machines for cash withdrawals, send and receive faxes, and provide loans to customers.

Banks have not improved or expanded their customer service, (Hall, 2008) and their "arrogance" is evident-in the opinion of this writer, during the current "financial crisis."

Banks are quasi government agencies and their customer service-or lack of it, is often dictated to them by government agencies and the private owned, Federal Reserve System. Further, few bankers know the source of their money, (Hall, 2008) let alone know how to change policies to accommodate customer needs and bankers may not have an interest in customer satisfaction and are not your friends, (Hill, 1998).

GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP IN BANKS

Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson has committed billions of dollars to buying bank stocks-a shift from buying toxic bank debt, and while this new plan may "save the financial system," policy changes are surely to occur as government increases their stake in the banking system.

Money privacy is surely to deteriorate as banks have their stock purchased by the government. Government agencies are expected to demand more privacy-invasive information from account holders in order to increase their money-tracking capabilities.

Banks in the future may become the equivalent of a full-fledged Federal government agency.

SAFETY AND PRIVACY

Today, money privacy is possible when businesses and individuals utilize privacy resources available to them. Indeed, it is possible to have no physical links to one’s business or personal money, (Hall, 2006) in the U.S.A. or offshore, (Barber, 2007) though personal money privacy for Americans and American businesses is best accomplished through "cash and carry banking" and the anonymous storage of currency in the U.S.A.

PRIVATE INVESTMENTS

Readers should not confuse personal and business money privacy with the matter of making investment assets private.

Investments can be made private, (Hall, 2006) and may be held in the U.S.A. and offshore, (Barber, 2007) and the subject is beyond the scope of this "banking" article.

Investments can be made privately and can be protected from seizure and this topic will be covered in a future article.

References

1.Barber, Hoyt, Tax Havens Today; The Benefits and Pitfalls of Investing Offshore, 2007, John Wiley & Sons
2.Brown, Harry, Does the Constitution Contain a Right to Privacy? 2003, www.HarryBrowne.org
3.Friedman, Emily, Can You Ever Really Maintain Your Privacy? March 24, 2008, ABC News, www.ABCnews.com
4.Hall, Grant, Privacy Crisis: Identity Theft Prevention Plan and Guide to Anonymous Living, 2006, James Clark King, LLC, www.PrivacyCrisis.com
5.Hall, Grant, The Cash Society: Private Bill Payments, August 29, 2008, www.PrivacyCrisis.com
6.Hall, Grant, Bank of "Arrogance" and the Privacy Crisis, 2008, www.Cryptovore.com
7.Hall, Grant, The Money Privacy Crisis: Banking Secretly in the U.S.A., 2007, www.RepublicBroadcasting.org
8.Hill, W.G., Banking in Silence, 1998, Scope International, Ltd.
9.Hill, W.G., PT 2: The Practice, 1990, Scope International, Ltd.
10.McAlvany, Donald S., Toward an American Police State, November 1993, The Future of Freedom Foundation, http://www.fff.org/1193d:asp
11.Rajter, Rick, Government Theft: How the Feds Seized my Silver Dollars, November 2007, The National Expositor, http://www.nationalexpositor.com/news/716.html.
12.Wollstein, Jarret, Police Cofiscations, Still out of Control, November 19, 2008, International Society for Individual Liberty, http://www.isil.org/resource/fnn/2001june/usa-police-confiscations.html

Copyright: James Clark King, LLC, November 27, 2008