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Page added on October 16, 2013
Chase Bank Limits Cash Withdrawals, Bans International Wire Transfers
Preparing for looming financial crisis in U.S.?
Chase Bank has moved to limit cash withdrawals while banning business customers from sending international wire transfers from November 17 onwards, prompting speculation that the bank is preparing for a looming financial crisis in the United States.
Numerous business customers with Chase BusinessSelect Checking and Chase BusinessClassic accounts have received letters over the past week informing them that cash activity (both deposits and withdrawals) will be limited to a $50,000 total per statement cycle from November 17 onwards.
The letter reads;
Dear Business Customer,
Starting November 17, 2013:
– You will no longer be able to send international wire transfers. You will still be able to send domestic wires and receive both domestic and international wires. We’ll cancel any international wire transfers, including reccurring ones, you scheduled to be sent after this date.
– Your cash activity limit for these accounts(s) will be $50,000 per statement cycle, per account. Cash activity is the combined total of cash deposits made at branches, night drops and ATMs and cash withdrawals made at branches (including purchases of money orders) and ATMs.
These changes will help us more effectively manage the risks involved with these types of transactions.
Another letter (PDF) received by Peak to Peak Charter School, a college in Colorado, states that the option to send both international and domestic wire transfers has been withdrawn from Chase business savings account holders.
Shortly after we posted this story, other Chase business customers confirmed they had also received similar or identical letters.
“I’m a Chase customer with both of the type accounts mentioned and got the letter posted,” wrote one.
“I have been a loyal customer of Chase for 11 years and I received the letter for my business and when I called about this I was told basically piss off and find another bank!” added another.
Chase is obviously very keen to make it hard for their customers to have any kind of control over their savings and is trying to prevent them from sending dollars abroad, prompting concerns that Cyprus-style account gouging could occur in America.
The move to limit deposits and withdrawals while banning international wire transfers altogether is a bizarre policy and will cripple many small and medium-sized businesses with Chase accounts. Buying stock from abroad in any kind of quantity will now become impossible for many companies, while paying employees will also be a headache.
Why has Chase announced such a ludicrous and restrictive policy change and is it related to the potential for a US debt default?
Speculation is rife that the bank is preparing for some kind of economic crisis by “locking down” its customers’ money. Although most still expect a deal to be struck to prevent a US debt default, its impact would “shake financial markets to a degree not seen since the Great Depression,” according to experts.
Others fear the move to restrict international wire transfers is part of a plan to protect against a near-future collapse of the US dollar.
Whatever the truth behind the policy change, Chase really needs to publicly explain its reasoning in order to quell the speculation.
The bank’s reputation was already under scrutiny after an incident earlier this year where Chase Bank customers across the country attempted to withdraw cash from ATMs only to see that their account balance had been reduced to zero. The problem, which Chase attributed to a technical glitch, lasted for hours before it was fixed, prompting panic from some customers.
Earlier this month it was also reported that two of the biggest banks in America were stuffing their ATMs with 20-30 per cent more cash than usual in order to head off a potential bank run if the US defaults on its debt.
The image below shows another example of a Chase business customer receiving the same letter.
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12 Comments on "Chase Bank Limits Cash Withdrawals, Bans International Wire Transfers"
dsula on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 7:49 pm
Seems to be a joke.
DC on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 8:25 pm
RoFL! One of the letters is from one of those fake corporate for-profit ‘charter schools’, the US is so fond of lately.
The same for-profit school system being pushed by the neo-lib bankers, among many other things of course.
The irony is thick with this one….
Arthur on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 8:53 pm
Apparently it is NOT a joke. Alex just updated his site:
“UPDATE: Chase Bank confirmed to Infowars that all business account holders were being subjected to these new regulations. They indicated that customers would have to pay a fee on every dollar withdrawn over the limit. Given that even a relatively small grocery store or restaurant is likely to turnover more than $50k a month in cash payments, this appears to be part of a wider move to shut down businesses who mainly deal in cash. The bottom line is that banks think your money is their money and will do everything in their power to prevent you from withdrawing it.”
DC on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 9:03 pm
The uS is long overdue for a good old fashioned bank run. Give amerikans a taste of what they do other countries citizens and govts that refuse to tow the IMF WB BIS line eh?
Arthur on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 9:33 pm
It looks like Chase is in the process of protecting itself against a bank run. Usually the first sign that an inflation spike is coming, forcing people to get rid of any paper money as soon as it comes in.
ghung on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 10:52 pm
Does anyone with more banking laws savvy know what gives them the authority to do this?.
Several years ago I went to one of my banks to get a large cashiers check and the bank officer said I had to give them ’cause’ (a reason) and give them three banking days notice. I asked to see the manager who gave me some lame banking rules story. I called a friend who’s a banking attorney who asked me to put the manager on the phone. Ten minutes later I had my check. They didn’t look happy that I had called their bluff.
I closed the account the next week, and let the manager know why. They’ve been trying to get my business back ever since, though they’ve been acquired (bailed out) by a larger bank. I don’t keep much in banks anymore.
DC on Wed, 16th Oct 2013 11:19 pm
You know, I wouldnt be at all surprised if that behavior you were subject to lies in the very nature of factional reserve lending itself. Think of it this way, they lend 9 dollars out for every 1 dollar actually deposited. When you, or anyone else, asks for a large sum of actual money, where you think the bank has to draw on it from?
The 1 dollar portion of course. The other 90% they have on the books listed as bank ‘assets'(ie hard currency) actually consists of ledger entries and sectors on a hard drive-and not actual money at all. Or put another way, banks have nowhere near the amount of actual money as the sum total of all depositors would have you believe. People withdrawing money-actually makes the banks balance situation even more precarious than it already is. That and if you wait 3 days, thats also 3 more days they can gamble with your deposit while your cooling your heals and getting steamed about the whole thing.
So when you come along and request money-it actually has the effect, if enough depositors are doing similar things, of increasing that 10:1 leverage even higher. Naturally, they dont really like that much as the attitude of the corporate banks is, its not *your* money once you deposit it, but theres, to hold and dispense, even to you!, at there convenience, not yours.
Im just a depositor like you-but I hope that is pretty close to the truth of the matter.
Keith_McClary on Thu, 17th Oct 2013 1:09 am
I can’t find mention of this in the mainstream media.
BillT on Thu, 17th Oct 2013 1:41 am
ghung, you need to read more current events at non-MSM sites. When you put money into a bank, it becomes the property of the bank and they can do what they want with it. I am sure such actions are covered by law or a large bank like Chase would not be implementing it now. This is going to become more and more common as time passes and they need more and more control over cash flows out of countries. Already becoming normal in the EU.
Note that it says they can still send it but they need to pay a ‘fee’ to do so. Chase 1 is in trouble and trying to prevent a run, I think. Time to run. I use banks only to receive my SS and to transfer it to my hands in the Philippines. Never more than $100 in the account for more than 2 days. One is Citi (Easiest and lowest fees) other is a smaller, more sound, bank in the Eastern US that my family has used since the Depression.
DMyers on Thu, 17th Oct 2013 4:41 am
The fact that they have one dollar for every ten they say they have is going to present a problem at some point. The only law needed here is contract law. Those are their terms. If you don’t like them, then go to another bank.
Something is behind this, but I cannot decipher what it is. Take the cash limit, for example. What’s the problem? The bank says: “These changes will help us more effectively manage the risks involved with these types of transactions.” What does that mean? Banks have lots of cash. What would more than fifty thou’ coming in a month do to that risk? Are customers typically being robbed on the bank floor as they carry in their cash deposits?
I’m going to assume that they were looking for a cheap, unprincipled new way to levy fees. That’s all that makes sense.
Arthur on Thu, 17th Oct 2013 8:35 am
All the remarks above about fractional reserve lending point towards the likely real issue: with the threat of a default looming, people withdrew more funds from their accounts than usual, more than Chase could deliver and that’s why they hit the brakes.
J-Gav on Thu, 17th Oct 2013 9:41 am
DMyers – You could be right about the fees part but, in a fractional reserve system based on constant growth and ever-increasing debt, customers are robbed before they even set foot in a bank – simply because their stagnating salaries will never keep up with credit and interest payments. It’s an uphill treadmill.