Re: The London Whale / Volcker : Fri May 18, 2012 2:54 pm  

Mintball wrote:

I got a statement from one of my ISAs the other day: over £5k in it – and £10 interest over a year. They've had over five grand of my money for a year and I get just £10. What the hell is the point?

The riskier ISA lost loads and has barely recovered – that was the 'safe' one.

How on earth is anyone supposed to save sensibly for the future?

Oh yes: you're supposed to become a financial wiz (gambler) and spend all the time when you're not working or shopping (to help the economy) on seeking out and understanding the 'best' deals and schemes around.

You're not supposed to save, you're supposed to spend to help the economy. Furthernmore, savers are paying for the financial crisis - because no one else can - and underwite the scrotes who borrowed so much pre-2008.

I think things are about to change though and interest rates rocket. That's why Mr Hammond has been (rightly) blaming individuals for the crisis.

Re: The London Whale / Volcker : Fri May 18, 2012 5:56 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

Except, any amount of cash apart from trivial sums is no longer acceptable, nobody will take it off you, for fear of being labelled a money launderer. You'd have it in yer barrow - but couldn't spend it!

It would have to be in brand new ten pound notes, I'd probably need a bigger barrow, so that when examining all 100,000 of them as I buy my million pound house in cash, the bank clerk and/or police fraud squad wouldn't be able to detect any drug contamination or any evidence at all that anyone had ever touched this money previously - I'm prepared to wait if they want to examine the money.

What would be even more fun would be to smear ink on your face and hands as you go to pay cash for the house and then as they are counting it ask them to be careful with certain bundles as they may still be a bit wet.

Re: The London Whale / Volcker : Sat May 19, 2012 1:05 am  

Dally wrote:

You're not supposed to save, you're supposed to spend to help the economy. Furthernmore, savers are paying for the financial crisis - because no one else can - and underwite the scrotes who borrowed so much pre-2008.

I think things are about to change though and interest rates rocket. That's why Mr Hammond has been (rightly) blaming individuals for the crisis.

Although I agree savers are gradually losing their purchasing power, if the government hadn't stepped in and bailed out the banking system they would have nothing at all.

Secondly banks don't actually loan out the money of savers, as I've explained before they create new credit, brand new money, when someone borrows from them.

Re: The London Whale / Volcker : Tue May 22, 2012 7:16 am  

And in the best traditions of Jimmy Cricket There's more

And in the best traditions of Jimmy Cricket There's more

Re: The London Whale / Volcker : Tue May 22, 2012 11:35 am  

cod'ead wrote: And in the best traditions of Jimmy Cricket There's more So what? That just means others have made an equivalent profit. (Mind you the scope for fraud is immense).

cod'ead wrote: And in the best traditions of Jimmy Cricket There's more So what? That just means others have made an equivalent profit. (Mind you the scope for fraud is immense).