cross-posted from: https://lemmy.today/post/50037354

The problem

If you have savings in a bank, stock market, 401(k) or other pension then don't expect to hold onto them unless you go along with the government's game of Simon says. You will be forced to get digital ID to access these in the future.

Vietnam is an example of this, where biometrics were made mandatory to access your bank accounts. The 86 million accounts which weren't biometrically verified were frozen and are now being closed. Transfers equivalent to around $390 or more also require biometric verification.

Many in the western world have also had their bank accounts frozen or closed for perfectly legal political views. And now when you move or withdraw money you may be asked what the purpose is and the bank may deny your request if they don't like your answer (just one example).

Another reason to avoid banks is that they watch everything you do and are required to report anything deemed suspicious to the government. Your bank is probably selling your transaction data too. Your pension provider probably sells your data too. Banks and pension providers also fail, especially when there are financial crises.

The solution

There are many alternative stores of wealth and ways of transacting, each with positives and negatives. I won't get into them here, but a simple one is precious metals - they are easy to understand, work for offline and private transactions, don't require others to adopt certain technologies and they are a stable store of value which may well give better returns than bank interest or even stocks. Now may be a good time to move as well - seeing as precious metal prices have dropped substantially.

It's very easy, but you can start with a single coin or bar to get comfortable with buying and holding precious metals. It doesn't have to be expensive, it can be a $70 pure silver coin. While there are scams out there they mainly rely on inflated prices or certificates for metals you don't physically possess. These are easy to avoid if you pay close to the spot price for the metal you're buying.

For small transactions and those with mainstream businesses you will have to rely on cash, but this is preferable to digital surveillance and money you don't own. Precious metals can be sold quite easily to coin shops, jewelry stores, pawnshops and online metal dealers. In the US ID checks are not required, but you will usually have to report sale to the IRS. Having friends and neighbors who are willing to trade cash for metals with you will also help.

Another option for small transactions with neighbors are old coins with low amounts of silver in them. 35% silver nickels currently have a melt value of $3.88 and can be purchased online for about $3.92 each. You can also buy old silver quarters and silver dollars at prices close to their melt values.