A rant of fiscal insanity

[delericho]

Incidentally, I've encountered something similar over here: a year or so ago my wife bought herself a car. During the course of that process, we were chatting to the salesman about various things, and he mentioned that it was actually not uncommon for people to show up wanting to buy a car then and there with cash - and he noted that not only could the dealership not sell a car like that, but they were actually obliged to report it to the police due to fears of money laundering.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

And people wonder why I prefer to live in Asia.

 

[Janx]

wow, I guess no one is actually reading what I wrote.

I read it. I agreed with you. I was first replier even.

It is stupid that 2 law abiding people can't perform a simple cash interaction at a bank.

sure there's ways around it, like the wire transfer (which why would your hospitalized friend know all that or have it on him).

One last workaround: chase smartphone deposit. take a picture of a check with their app and it's deposited. Your friend could have done the deposit himself from the hospital (assuming somebody could give him a check, instead of cash).

 

[Umbran]

Yep, that's exactly what it is. Basically, they need to be able to trace where that money has come from, which means they need a 'known' person in the loop of the transaction.

Yep. It isn't that the bank won't take cash. It won't take cash from people it doesn't know.

And these days, $5000 is not a "modest" amount of cash. It is a big, fat wad of cash! Few people (less than few, I expect) carry around that kind of scratch in paper any more in the US. So, it stands out if you have it on hand.

Yes, you know there's nothing untoward going on. Friend A and Friend B know there's nothing untoward going on. Heck, the bank staff probably know there's nothing untoward going on. But the computer, that may well be looking for largish unexplained deposits, the computer does not.

Stop at the bank staff level. They probably don't know any such thing. The guy is not a customer. The bank staff has never seen him before. He's given them a really nice story about how he's helping a friend in the hospital, that's all they know. If the humans could be trusted to make the judgement call, the general policy wouldn't be needed, now would it? Humans are really easy to trick with a good story, which is why they need such procedures!

 

[Homicidal_Squirrel]

So... why not just deposit the money through the ATM? It avoids having to deal with bank staff.

 

[Umbran]

So... why not just deposit the money through the ATM? It avoids having to deal with bank staff.

I would assume because he didn't have the appropriate bank card and PIN...

 

[Homicidal_Squirrel]

I would assume because he didn't have the appropriate bank card and PIN...

Maybe he should have gotten the card and PIN. It would have made things so much easier.

 

[Umbran]

And really, how does making sure you have an account with them stop you from laundering money?

Well, Federal law requires that you have some ID documents to open a bank account - a valid photo ID, your SSN, and proof of address (like a utility bill or lease agreement). So, there is greater confidence that they know who you are than if you just wander in off the street.

Are you going to launder money at the bank if, when the auditors come, they can attach that information about you to the deposit? Probably not.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

So... why not just deposit the money through the ATM? It avoids having to deal with bank staff.

I'm not a fan of ATMs, personally, but would you honestly feel comfortable depositing $5K standing at one?

 

[Homicidal_Squirrel]

Well, Federal law requires that you have some ID documents to open a bank account - a valid photo ID, your SSN, and proof of address (like a utility bill or lease agreement). So, there is greater confidence that they know who you are than if you just wander in off the street.

Are you going to launder money at the bank if, when the auditors come, they can attach that information about you to the deposit? Probably not.

Sure, why not? You're putting money into an account. The problem is how you got the money, not who deposits it.