National planning Cyprus-style solution for New Zealand

The National Government are pushing a Cyprus-style solution to bank failure in New Zealand which will see small depositors lose some of their savings to fund big bank bailouts, the Green Party said today.

Open Bank Resolution (OBR) is Finance Minister Bill English’s favoured option dealing with a major bank failure. If a bank fails under OBR, all depositors will have their savings reduced overnight to fund the bank’s bail out.

“Bill English is proposing a Cyprus-style solution for managing bank failure here in New Zealand – a solution that will see small depositors lose some of their savings to fund big bank bailouts,” said Green Party Co-leader Dr Russel Norman.

“The Reserve Bank is in the final stages of implementing a system of managing bank failure called Open Bank Resolution. The scheme will put all bank depositors on the hook for bailing out their bank.

“Depositors will overnight have their savings shaved by the amount needed to keep the bank afloat.

“While the details are still to be finalised, nearly all depositors will see their savings reduced by the same proportions.

“Bill English is wrong to assume everyday people are able to judge the soundness of their bank. Not even sophisticated investors like Merrill Lynch saw the global financial crisis coming.

“If he insists on pushing through this unfair scheme, small depositors can be protected ahead of time with a notified savings threshold below which their savings will be safe from any interference.”

Dr Norman questioned the Government’s insistence on pursuing Open Bank Resolution when virtually no other OECD country uses it.

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1303/S00306/national-planning-cyprus-style-solution-for-new-zealand.htm 

US Deposits In Perspective: $25 Billion In Insurance, $9,283 Billion In Deposits; $297,514 Billion In Derivatives

Earlier today [4], the American Banking Association reminded Americans that there is absolutely nothing to worry about when it comes to the sanctity of US deposits: after all there is a whopping $25 billion in the FDIC insurance fund which means "insured depositors are safe and their deposits are protected by a strong FDIC fund....The FDIC insurance fund has over $25 billion in reserves and the banking industry " Obviously supposedly "insured" depositors in Cyprus also though there was nothing to worry about, until they woke up on Saturday with a haircut between 6.75% and 9.9% on their money in the bank. Sadly, it may be the case that the ABA is being just modestly disingenuous in its statement. Why? Instead of explaining it in detail, here is a snapshot that does more than thousands of words ever could.

Chart drawn to scale.

 [5]

The $25 billion in touted deposit insurance is supposed to preserve and protect (granted not in their entirety) some $9,283 billion in total US deposits. A far bigger problem, however, is when one considers the "asset" side of the US banks' ledger: remember deposits are unsecured liabilities. And for US banks, sadly, over the counter derivatives represent the vast majority of "off the books" assets. According to the latest OCC quarterly report [6], the total derivative notional outstanding of the Top 25 holding companies is $297,514 billion, or nearly $300 trillion. In other words there are 32 times more notional derivatives than there are total deposits, while the ratio of gross derivatives to deposit insurance is a concerning 11,900-to-1.

And with that, we hand it back to the ABA to comfort all US depositors that Cyprus could never possibly happen in the US.

Steve Forbes: Here's Why Cyprus Is Bad For All Of Us!

What in the world is going through the minds of European officials with their crazy, destructive demands with Cyprus? Seizing a portion of peoples’ bank deposits is the kind of thing one would expect from Argentina or other kleptocratic third-world governments. It sets an awful precedent shredding the rule of law, which is the bedrock of a free and vibrant society. The fact that Cyprus is small is irrelevant. The germane fact is that it was Western Europe, supposedly a strong believer in the rule of law, that engaged in this Hugo Chavez-like move. Now, it’s not inconceivable that President Obama or somebody with a similar ideology could propose seizing and integrating people’s 401K plans into Social Security. And in a panic, Congress would go along...

http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveforbes/2013/03/18/for-whom-does-the-cyprus-bell-toll-alas-all-of-us/  

Factbox: Cyprus Contagion – Who’s Looking Poorly?

1. Cyprus bailout sets levy on bank deposits. Should euro zone depositors be worried? 2. How big is the levy? 9.9% on deposits over €100k; 6.75% on smaller deposits; Deposits under €20k may be exempted; Levy intended to raise €5.8bln 3. News sent euro zone bank stocks as much as 4% lower as investors fear precedent is set... 4. So how exposed are the euro zone strugglers? Total Bank Deposits: Italy: €2,437.1bln. Spain: €2,297bln. Greece: €252.5bln.

Why Cyprus matters to US Investors

Wall Street is heavily invested in bank debt across the European Union. If banks begin falling as a result of the Cyprus 'bailout,' investors in the U.S. will feel the loss.

By Cyrus Sanati

FORTUNE -- The terms of the Cypriot "bailout" announced late Friday are simply atrocious and should be revised to protect small depositors to avoid potentially crippling bank runs from popping up across Europe. Forcing bank losses on account holders who believed their money was protected by government-backed deposit insurance violates one of the most sacred of trusts between a bank and its customers. As such, the agreement, if it stands, threatens to crash the entire Cypriot banking system, which could have dangerous effects for banks across the European Union, as well as for investors on Wall Street, who have bet billions of dollars backing EU banks and sovereign notes.

End of Systemic Trust - the beginning of the end of financial system

How about in the US?  Could the US declare a bank holiday and unilaterally devalue the currency in one swift move?  I will get over 9,000 responses saying this could never happen in the good ol’ US of A but of course it could.  In fact it has already been done before during FDR’s first 100 days in office.  The template already exists.  Electronic banking only makes the process that much easier.

Technically, since the Fed has been running a policy of monetary inflation since about 1920, the government here already has been quietly taxing the savings accounts of its citizens without their permission for decades.  The subtle difference between what Europe is doing in Cyprus and what the Fed does every day to American citizens is that the Cyprus theft is happening in one discrete event while the Fed’s theft drips in slowly over years.

But no matter which way you look at the situation, expect things to deteriorate from here.
Did you or your firm stash a bunch of money off-shore in some tax-friendly haven that probably has a favorable relationship to the British Crown?  Best of luck with that.  Tax havens are nothing more than legal arbitrages.  With the value of law moving to zero, the value of your account approaches the same.

http://www.zerohedge.com/print/471569 

The Botching of the Cyprus Bailout: Worse Than Lehman Brothers

Everyone now agrees that Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson badly botched the Lehman Brothers crisis of 2009. But at least he had an excuse. Panicked by the speed of Lehman’s meltdown, he had no time for second thoughts. By comparison the German-led group of EU officials who  engineered this weekend’s Cyprus bank bailout don’t have a leg to stand on. Although they had years to consider their options (Cyprus’s problems are closely related to those of Greece and have long been almost as obvious), they have opted for a “solution” that amounts to probably the single most inexplicably irresponsible decision in banking supervision in the advanced world since the 1930s.

As my colleague Tim Worstall has pointed out in a well argued contributionyesterday, they have weakened – perhaps catastrophically – the principal pillar supporting modern banking. This pillar is deposit insurance. Ordinary savers who had received a solemn assurance that deposits up to 100,000 euros were safe are now being asked to take a haircut. This raises questions about deposit insurance throughout the EU and invites runs on banks not only in the most “financially-challenged” nations such as Greece and Spainbut even in Italy and France.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/eamonnfingleton/2013/03/17/the-botching-of-the-cyprus-bailout-worse-than-lehman-brothers/ 

EU plan to seize bank accounts causes markets to sell off

NEW EU PLAN: STEAL BANK ACCOUNTS...
Island set to seize personal savings...
Plan moves ahead as vote delayed...
Putin: 'Unfair,' 'Dangerous'...
FT: Here come bank runs...
Germany: Not our idea...
Italy to follow?
Markets rattled...
Euro tumbles...
Dow drops...
LIVE...

Cyprus deal shock sends shares tumbling, gold up

LONDON (Reuters) - The surprise decision by euro zone leaders to part-fund a bailout of Cyprus by taxing bank deposits sent shockwaves through financial markets on Monday, with shares and the bonds of struggling euro zone governments tumbling.

The bloc struck a deal on Saturday to hand Cyprus rescue loans worth 10 billion euros ($13 billion), but defied warnings - including from the European Central Bank - and imposed a levy that would see those with cash in the island's banks lose between 6.75 and 9.9 percent of their money.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/yen-firms-asia-shares-fall-001926588.html

The Botching of the Cyprus Bailout: Worse Than Lehman Brothers

Everyone now agrees that Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson badly botched the Lehman Brothers crisis of 2009. But at least he had an excuse. Panicked by the speed of Lehman’s meltdown, he had no time for second thoughts. By comparison the German-led group of EU officials who  engineered this weekend’s Cyprus bank bailout don’t have a leg to stand on. Although they had years to consider their options (Cyprus’s problems are closely related to those of Greece and have long been almost as obvious), they have opted for a “solution” that amounts to probably the single most inexplicably irresponsible decision in banking supervision in the advanced world since the 1930s.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/eamonnfingleton/2013/03/17/the-botching-of-the-cyprus-bailout-worse-than-lehman-brothers/

ATMs drained as bailout tax triggers run on bank deposits

Panic: people queued to withdraw money after it was determined that part of the Greek bailout would come from the bank accounts of savers. Photo: Reuters

In a move that could set off new fears of contagion across the eurozone, anxious depositors drained cash from ATMs in Cyprus on Saturday, hours after European officials in Brussels required that part of a new €10 billion ($12.6 billion) bailout must be paid for directly from the bank accounts of savers.

The move - a first in the three-year-old European financial crisis - raised questions over whether bank runs could be set off elsewhere.

Jeroen Dijsselbloem, president of the group of euro-area ministers, on Saturday declined to rule out taxes on depositors in countries beyond Cyprus, although he said such a measure was not currently being considered. Although banks placed withdrawal limits of €400 on ATMs, most of them had run out of cash by early evening. People around the country reacted with disbelief and anger.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/world/atms-drained-as-bailout-tax-triggers-run-on-bank-deposits-20130317-2g8rx.html#ixzz2Noo2hqwq

Cyprus bank account seizure just the beginning, says report

Today, lots of people woke up in shock and horror to what happened in Cyprus: a forced capital reallocation mandated by political elites under the guise of an "equity investment" in insolvent banks, which is really code for a "coercive, mandatory wealth tax." If less concerned about political correctness, one could say that what just happened was daylight robbery from savers to banks and the status quo. These same people may be even more shocked to learn that today's Cypriot "resolution" is merely the first of many such coercive interventions into personal wealth, first in Europe, and then everywhere else.

For the benefit of those people, we wish to point them to our article from September 2011, "The "Muddle Through" Has Failed: BCG Says "There May Be Only Painful Ways Out Of The Crisis [11]", which predicted and explained all of this and much more. What else did the September BCG study conclude? Simply that such mandatory, coercive wealth tax is merely the beginning for a world in which there was some $21 trillion in excess debt as of 2009, a number which has since ballooned to over $30 trillion. And with inflation woefully late in appearing and "inflating away" said debt overhang, Europe first is finally moving to Plan B, and is using Cyrprus as its Guniea Pig.

For those who missed it the first time, here it is again. Somehow we think many more people will listen this time around:

Restructuring the debt overhang in the euro zone would require financing and would be a daunting task. In order to finance controlled restructuring, politicians could well conclude that it was necessary to tax the existing wealth of the private sector. Many politicians would see taxing financial assets as the fairest way of resolving the problem. Taxing existing financial assets would acknowledge one fact: these investments are not as valuable as their owners think, as the debtors (governments, households, and corporations) will be unable to meet their commitments. Exhibit 3 shows the one-time tax on financial assets required to provide the necessary funds for an orderly restructuring.

http://www.zerohedge.com/print/471520 

BCG Back to Mesopotamia

World Gold Council suggests central banks diversify away from US Dollar

Central banks may start favoring currencies from China, Japan and Australia as the dollar fall out of favor.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The World Gold Council had some words of advice for central banks around the world: It may be time to diversify away from the U.S. dollar.

While the dollar remains the world's main reserve currency, the WGC said in a research report that its "optimal" strategy would involve, what else, but gold.

Along with the dollar and the euro, gold is one of the traditional reserve assets that central banks hold.

But the WGC said central bankers should also consider a number of alternative assets, including those priced in the currencies of Canada, Australia and China.

Central banks in emerging markets have been diversifying away from the U.S. dollar for some time, as the outlook for the currency remains uncertain. According to the International Monetary Fund, the dollar's share of total central bank reserves has decreased to 54% from 62% over the past 12 years.

http://money.cnn.com/2013/03/14/investing/central-banks-dollar/index.html?iid=HP_LN 

On the Brink in Italy

GUIDONIA, Italy — Emanuele Tedeschi wiped  sawdust from his hands and gestured around the cavernous woodworking factory that has been in his family for two  generations. The big machines, which used to run overtime carving  custom furnishings for private homes, Roman palazzi  and even the  Vatican,  sat idle on a shop floor nearly devoid of workers.

'‘A year and a half ago, the noise from production was so loud that  you had to shout to be heard,’' said Mr. Tedeschi, walking amid  pallets of cherry and other fine woods stacked up and waiting for a purpose.

Since a government austerity plan designed to shield Italy from  Europe’s debt crisis took hold last year, the economy has tumbled  into one of worst recessions of any euro zone country, and Mr.  Tedeschi’s orders have all but dried up.  His company, Temeca, is still in business. For now.

But among Italy’s estimated six  million companies, businesses of all  sizes have been going belly up at the rate of 1,000 a day over the  last year, especially among the small and midsize companies that  represent the backbone of Italy’s 1.5 trillion euro, or $2 trillion, economy.

The situation has become more urgent after inconclusive elections  in February that left politics in Rome gridlocked. '‘With no one  governing the country, there will be more paralysis, so things will get worse,’' said Mr. Tedeschi, 49, casting a worried glance at his wife and their 23-year-old son. They help fill the trickle of orders, now that Mr. Tedeschi has had to lay off 6 of the 11 full-time employees he had in mid-2011.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/12/business/global/12iht-euitaly12.html

Paulson Said to Explore Puerto Rico as Home With Low Tax

Ten wealthy Americans have already taken advantage of the year-old Puerto Rican law that lets new residents pay no local or U.S. federal taxes on capital gains, according to Alberto Baco Bague, Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce of Puerto Rico. The marginal tax rate for affluent New Yorkers can exceed 50 percent on ordinary income.

Paulson, 57, recently looked at real estate in the exclusive Condado neighborhood of San Juan, where an 8,379- square-foot penthouse, complete with six underground parking spaces, lists for $5 million. The area is home to St. John’s School, a private English-language academy where he and his wife could send their two children, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions were private.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-11/paulson-said-to-explore-puerto-rico-as-home-with-low-tax.html

Dow Stock Market High, Is It Really 2007 Again?

We all know the headline unemployment rate is a farce. So fraudulent is the headline rate in fact that the not-so-US Fed has decided to peg its overnight interest rate policy decisions to whatever number the BLS happens to crank out. Go below the target of the day and up go rates and into the meat grinder goes what is left of the US Economy.

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article39395.html

Dow and Silver in Gold Terms

The Dow on Gold's terms:

• During January 2000 gold traded at an average price of $284.32
• January 2000 the Dow was 10,900
• 10,900/$284.32 per ounce = 38.33 gold ounces to buy the Dow

Today gold is trading at $1570.90 while the Dow Jones (DJIA) continues to break records, up another 30 points as I write to 14,284.

"At first, the drop in the dollar simply offset the apparent rise in home prices, and prices in gold worked sideways until 2006. But when home prices began to fall in dollar terms, and dollars were themselves falling in value, the double-whammy pushed true home prices down to levels not seen since the late 1980s. In fact, they set a new record, the lowest level since the index was first published. This means that most homes purchased in the last 20 years are now worth less than the original purchase price, even if they show gains of 100%, 200%, or more, in dollar terms." ~ pricedingold.com

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article39400.html

Fugitive Fund Manager Stuffed Underwear With Cash, Fled

The German fugitive hedge fund manager who more than five years ago fled the Spanish island of Mallorca with $500,000 hidden in his underwear and luggage faces U.S. charges after his arrest at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

Florian Homm, 53, was taken into custody by Italian police at 12:30 p.m. on March 8 at the world-famous museum that houses Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and Leonardo da Vinci’s Annunciation.

The arrest, by Homm’s own account as well as that of U.S. prosecutors, followed his 2007 decision to leave behind a life of wealth, castles and “bimbos.” During his escape, he held a Liberian diplomatic passport as well as German and Irish passports, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-08/fugitive-hedge-fund-manager-homm-arrested-at-gallery.html

Wealth Inequality in America

http://economy.money.cnn.com/2013/03/08/wealth-video/?iid=HP_LN

BRICS agree to use credit in local currencies

The BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - have agreed to provide credit to each other in local currencies. Officials say the deal will facilitate economic growth in times of crisis.

The currency swap deal is aimed at promoting trade and investment in local currencies as well as to cut transaction costs.  It’s also seen as a step to replace the dollar as a reserve currency in trade between BRICS.

http://rt.com/business/brics-currencies-credit-deal-755/