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> Banks, for instance, don't just co-mingle customer funds, they invest those funds on their own behalf and reap the profits for themselves. Sometimes a bank will share a portion of its profit with its customers, in the form of intest; more often, the bank pays little or no interest, and actually charges the customer fees. A bank will risk its customers' money, and its customers will pay for that privilege.

Banking has not worked like this in quite a few years.




Fractional reserve banking is exactly how this works, albeit banks do not "invest" the customers' money, instead they lend it.


What is a loan but an investment? What is government debt? What are mortgage backed securities?

The investments that banks can make are restricted, but it is not inaccurate to call them investments.


Is Glass Steagall still a thing?


Sadly, no. It was repealed in 1999.




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