FedNow
You may not be aware that FedNow digital currency is now live. I’ve gathered the following information and hope it is helpful to you.
The hype sounds good, right? All the advantages - like a used car salesman, but what about the down side? Think ‘truth in advertising’, and remember how all the government programs work so well over time.
First, the ‘official’ stance - from our government:
July 21, 2023 - The Federal Reserve on Thursday announced that its new system for instant payments, the FedNow® Service, is now live.
About the FedNow® Service
The FedNow Service is a new instant payment infrastructure developed by the Federal Reserve that allows financial institutions of every size across the U.S. to provide safe and efficient instant payment services. It will launch in July 2023.
Through financial institutions participating in the FedNow Service, businesses and individuals can send and receive instant payments in real time, around the clock, every day of the year. Financial institutions and their service providers can use the service to provide innovative instant payment services to customers, and recipients will have full access to funds immediately, allowing for greater financial flexibility when making time-sensitive payments.
The video… follows a payment over the FedNow Service from start to finish, highlighting what financial institutions need to know about their role in the process.
By the way, these are the same people who brought us 457 agencies - not yet counting FedNow. At least, those are the ones they claim as of today.
Next, from legacy media:
FedNow FAQs: What The Fed’s New Instant Payments System Is - And Is Not
Forbes (7/20/2023)
Its potential impact on the global banking industry - with thousands of financial institutions able to access the system - has generated not only praise but also concerns and confusion about what FedNow will actually do.
FedNow is the first U.S. government-created and -backed portal allowing banks [and other financial institutions] to send and receive funds almost instantly.
With FedNow, you can make payments - say, on your mortgage - ideally within seconds. You can send funds on the due date rather than having to plan several days out for an online payment to clear, or up to a week for a check to be processed.
As the Fed puts it, “The FedNow Service is neither a form of currency nor a step toward eliminating any form of payment, including cash.”
Here’s what USNews (8/24/2023) has to say:
FedNow Service is a new payment system from the Federal Reserve aimed at allowing individuals and businesses to send and receive money instantly.
Though it is similar to existing services Fedwire and FedACH, the difference with FedNow is that there is no lag time. Instant banking transactions can help with cash flow and lets people receive paychecks and other payments faster, helping them avoid the costs of check cashing.
With FedNow, funds will settle in real time so transactions can go through instantly.
Here's how it works: Payment is initiated through a bank or credit union, and a payment message is sent to the FedNow Service. FedNow validates the payment message and passes it to the recipient's bank, which confirms it will accept the payment. FedNow then sends a payment notice to notify the two banks that the debit and credit is complete.
Ultimately, it is still a "regular" money transfer – it's just happening more quickly.
The FedNow Service is not mandatory, but all banks and credit unions are encouraged to participate.
Oh, I feel totally reassured now. How about you?
Lastly, more comments and resources:
Banks and other financial institutions get tutorials and ‘relationship managers’:
- https://explore.fednow.org/explore-the-city
- https://www.frbservices.org/financial-services/fednow
- Participating Financial Institutions
More digital identity – tracking…
- Meet Amazon One
- Pay with Your Palm: Amazon One technology coming to all Whole Foods
In November 2022 I told you about Federal Reserve Announces Digital Currency Rolling Out July 2023: Be aware of digital tracking, expiring 'money', social credit score
In December 2022 I wrote about Digital Currency and CBDCs: Do you trust your government to be in control of your money or to be the USA bank?
Articles from other sources:
Hero of the Week: July 24, 2023: Lord Mervyn A. King, Baron King of Lothbury
Solari Report (7/24/2023)
Our Hero of the Week is Lord Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England from 2003 to 2013, for his clear stance on the futility and danger of a British version of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), also known as the Britcoin.
“It’s about privacy…. If a French President believes that if he makes a small transaction to his mistress, that the CIA will know about it then it’s not a very sound basis on which to put in place an international payment system.” ~ Lord Mervyn King
CBDCs: The Ultimate Tool of Financial Intrusion,
Mises Wire (8/8/2023)
Why We’re Concerned About FedNow
IFA (6/9/2023)Banks Take Lead in Establishing Personal Social Credit System, Critics Charge: US Banks Also Discriminate
Epoch Times (8/1/2023)
Excerpt:
JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank, has also faced allegations of political and religious discrimination.
“We're already seeing this happening in the U.S.,” ADF's Mr. Ross said.
“Before this, there was obviously Sam Brownback and the National Committee for Religious Freedom,” he said, referring to accounts allegedly closed by JPMorgan Chase. “Chase also canceled Defense of Liberty a couple of years ago, retired [Lt. Gen.] Michael Flynn, the Family Council—all of them are designated either high risk or reputational risk.”
In May, longtime JPMorgan Chase shareholder David Bahnsen brought a shareholder action against the bank, claiming that it had closed the accounts of a religious organization established by former senator and U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback for political reasons.
While the action ultimately failed to gain majority support from shareholders, Mr. Bahnsen stated: “One thing I am certain of is that the next time a bank manager decides to close an account for somebody like Ambassador Brownback, they’re going to think twice about doing it. This was covered far and wide by both the left-wing press and the right-wing press, and I do not believe it looked good upon JPMorgan."
In November 2021, WePay, a payment services company owned by JPMorgan Chase, abruptly canceled services they were providing for Defense of Liberty, a conservative organization, for an event featuring Donald Trump Jr. WePay said at the time that it wouldn't serve anyone who promotes "hate, violence, racial intolerance, terrorism, the financial exploitation of a crime."
That prompted Missouri state Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick to threaten to halt state business with the bank.
In July 2021, Family Council faced a similar denial of service.
“Although Family Council generally tries to avoid doing business with companies like Chase, at 10:29 am on July 7, 2021, our office received a terse email from our credit card processor—a company owned by J.P. Morgan Chase—saying, ‘Unfortunately, we can no longer support your business.’ At 10:30 AM, they terminated our account, and we could no longer accept donations,” Family Council stated.
“For nearly two years, we had used this company to process donations that our supporters made to Family Council and the Education Alliance via our websites. If you gave by credit or debit card, this company handled the transaction. Without a processor, it’s impossible for a nonprofit to accept donations online.”
On March 23, financial officers from 14 states wrote a letter to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon expressing "concern that the bank is engaged in what appears to be politically motivated de-banking of certain industries, individuals, and groups."
"A large number of our pension funds are direct shareholders of Chase, and as stewards of our states’ investment dollars, we are concerned that the company’s recent pattern of apparent politically motivated de-banking constitutes a breach of its fiduciary duty," they stated. "Under the law, you and the other officers of the company must act to maximize profit and must not subordinate the company’s long-term financial well-being to extraneous personal or political ends.”
Meanwhile, 19 state attorneys general wrote a letter to Mr. Dimon.
"It is clear that JPMorgan Chase & Co. has persistently discriminated against certain customers due to their religious or political affiliation.
"This discrimination is unacceptable," the AGs wrote. "Chase must stop such behavior and align its business practices with the anti-discrimination policies that Chase proclaims."
Discrimination Could Spread Beyond Politics
Some say they are concerned that bank discrimination could spread beyond political and religious views to a broader social credit system that might also include things such as environmental behavior and gun control.
“There is every reason to believe that current discriminatory practices in banking could soon expand to personal CO2 emissions or gun purchases,” Mr. Haskins said.
“Banks and other financial institutions have already started to discriminate with gun companies, either through higher fees or rates or by refusing to do business entirely, and every large bank in the United States, from Bank of America to Citi and Wells Fargo, have said they have started the process of phasing out CO2 emissions from their entire business model, including lending and banking services,” he said.
“This will take a few decades to complete, but if these banks go through with their plans, individuals and companies that rely on fossil fuels—almost everyone today—will be greatly affected.”
“The policies they use to do this are very expansive policies, like 'reputational risk' or 'politically exposed person,'” the ADF's Mr. Ross said. “There’s not really a limiting principle there, and so we can certainly see it aimed at any sort of political opponent or anyone who has views that activists or even government actors think are unpopular."
“We’ve been carefully monitoring Chase, which de-banked General Flynn and de-banked other conservatives, then last fall de-banked Ambassador Brownback’s organization,” Scott Shepard, a director at the National Center for Public Policy Research, told The Epoch Times.
“And just this last week, they de-banked a couple of doctors who are out talking about the inefficacy of [COVID-19] vaccines, that they won’t stop transmission, that they won’t make takers immune, etc., and the bank still hasn’t explained why,” Mr. Shepard said. “We’ve seen similar behavior at Bank of America, along with Bank of America sharing private information about the transactions of customers without warrants. And last week, we found out that that happens all the time; [FBI Director] Chris Wray says so.”
…
“So when they turn around and start weaponizing these financial services to cut off people with views they don’t like, they’re breaking the public trust,” he noted.
“The American banks that seem to be leading these de-banking and discrimination policies are the too-big-to-fail banks,” Mr. Shepard said. “If you’re backstopped by American taxpayers, you get to keep your profits but we cover your losses—you may not discriminate against the viewpoint of any American.”
My friends, I encourage you to do your own research and think for yourself.
VoteTexas.gov, https://www.votetexas.gov/get-involved/index.html
Until next time…
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