money

Money Laundering Is Financial Thoughtcrime

"From President Roosevelt's 1933 seizure of personal gold to the Nazi confiscation of Jewish wealth to the recent deposit theft at Cyprus banks, asset plundering by governments has a long and colorful tradition. Protecting wealth from oppressive regimes continues to this day. Even as the money-laundering laws are said to exist for the fight against terrorism or drugs or gambling, the cashless utopia is simultaneously being thrust upon us as the monetary architecture of the future. Expect ever more increasing thoughtcrime enforcement as the international money flow tightens." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMoney Laundering Is Financial Thoughtcrime

Bitcoin: The Tyranny Test

"Bitcoin is a test for 'the powers that be.' The way they deal with this new method of exchange will reveal their true nature. If they ignore Bitcoin, they refute the charges of tyranny. If they attack it, they verify those charges. After all, what honest reason could there be to attack an inherently peaceful tool for transferring value? Reasons to attack Bitcoin have recently appeared in the 'public square.' Here are the three most popular ones, each followed with some analysis." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin: The Tyranny Test

A Push for a Bitcoin Buttonwood

"Amid the incense, cheap art and herbal remedies for sale in Union Square in Manhattan on Monday, a very different kind of product was changing hands: bitcoins. Just feet from the park’s statue of George Washington, a crowd of young men gathered on Monday afternoon to buy and sell the digital, crypto-currency. The men – and there were only men – were brought together by an online posting from Josh Rossi, 31, a bitcoin aficionado who works in technology at the World Trade Financial Group. He had proposed what he called Project Buttonwood, a reference to the where the New York Stock Exchange had its beginning in 1792." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingA Push for a Bitcoin Buttonwood

CFTC Considering Bitcoin Regulations

"Bitcoin 'is for sure something we need to explore', Bart Chilton, one of the five commissioners at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) told the Financial Times. Said Mr Chilton: 'It’s not monopoly money we’re talking about here – real people can have real risk in these instruments, and we need to ensure that we protect markets and consumers, even in what at first blush appear to be ‘out there’ transactions.' In essence, we’re talking about a type of shadow currency, and there is more than a colourable argument to be made that derivative products relating to Bitcoin falls squarely in our jurisdiction.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCFTC Considering Bitcoin Regulations

India central bank introduces more policies to curb gold imports

"India's central bank announced more stringent measures for gold imports by banks in it's annual monetary statement. Analysts said the move is likely to impact country's gold imports this year. The central bank said banks will be allowed to import bullion on a consignment basis to meet only genuine needs of exporters of gold jewelry. RBI will issue detailed guidelines on gold imports by authorized banks by the end of this month after it sees banks also import gold on an unfixed price basis and loan basis, according to the central bank." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIndia central bank introduces more policies to curb gold imports

Chinese Way of Doing Business: In Cash We Trust

"Lugging nearly $130,000 in cash into a dealership might sound bizarre, but it’s not exactly uncommon in China, where hotel bills, jewelry purchases and even the lecture fees for visiting scholars are routinely settled with thick wads of renminbi, China’s currency. This is a country, after all, where home buyers make down payments with trunks filled with cash. And big-city law firms have been known to hire armored cars to deliver the cash needed to pay monthly salaries. Many experts say it is not a refusal to enter the 21st century as much as wariness, of the government toward its citizens and vice versa." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingChinese Way of Doing Business: In Cash We Trust

Bitcoin vs. Ben Bernanke

"Thousands of mostly small online merchants are already accepting payment in Bitcoin, The virtual money that debuted in 2009 with a value of zero and traded for the first time in 2010 at a price of three-tenths of a cent recently changed hands at $97. For Mr. Andresen, a Princeton graduate who once wrote technical standards for 3-D graphics on the Internet, Bitcoin has already begun to replace the U.S. dollar. In November, the Bitcoin Foundation, where he serves as chief scientist, began paying him in the virtual currency. So far he has persuaded his barber to accept this new money, but only from Mr. Andresen. A haircut costs half a Bitcoin." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin vs. Ben Bernanke

Fractional Reserve Banking: It’s Not Your Money…You Only Think It Is!

"In the aftermath of the forced confiscation of bank accounts in Cyprus, the question that clients ask me most is, 'could it happen here?' 'Here' is wherever the client lives or invests, and could be the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, or any other country. The answer is yes. This result stems from the nature of our modern financial system, built as it is on the flawed foundation of a poorly-understood concept called 'fractional reserve banking.' This new reality is harsh, but as I said before, it’s healthy. People need to be reminded that money deposited in a bank converts their wealth into a debt-claim." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFractional Reserve Banking: It’s Not Your Money…You Only Think It Is!

Shock: Federal Reserve Official Calls for End of Fed, Competing Currencies

"This is a fairly shocking video in the sense that the gentleman being interviewed is a former Fed official. He calls for a free-market gold and silver standard along with competing currencies – just what we've been suggesting. What is just as interesting is the focus on the Fed as a central bank. Stossel points out that central planning has been discredited the world over, so why does the world have central planning for money? This is a big issue and one that will not go away. After a century of central banking the world is in a bad state and getting worse not better." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShock: Federal Reserve Official Calls for End of Fed, Competing Currencies

Doug Casey on Internationalizing Your Cash

"I'm quite serious about what I said about 'the grim reality of impending currency controls.' As the global economy continues to deteriorate, governments will have to appear to be 'doing something.' It's going to become very fashionable to institute some sort of foreign exchange control. Why might that be? Because obviously, people who are taking their money out of the country are unpatriotic…" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDoug Casey on Internationalizing Your Cash