“Every revolution needs a good crisis in order to germinate its seed. The cashless revolution is no different.” ~Patrick Henningsen Depending on who you ask, the idea of a cashless society is either a utopia of modern convenience or an Orwellian nightmare, but recent international events coupled with stories about ATM cyber-hacks are fair signals that…
Russia gold buying accelerated in October with the Russian central bank buying a very large 48 metric tonnes or 1.3 million ounces of gold bullion. This is the largest addition of gold to the Russian monetary reserves since 1998 and could be seen as a parting ‘gift’ by Prime Minister Putin to his rival ex-President Obama….
There are some things you can only pay for with cash — or at least there used to be. Forgot quarters for the parking meter? No worries — a growing number of cities now offer automated machines that take credit cards or applications allowing consumers to pay using their smartphones. Need a couple of dollars…
Less than a week after India’s surprise move to scrap its highest denomination cash notes, another front in the War on Cash has intensified down under in Australia. Yesterday, banking giant UBS proposed that eliminating Australia’s $100 and $50 bills would be “good for the economy and good for the banks.” (How convenient that a…
The Taliban has been trying to fundraise on the internet longer than Afghanistan’s current government has existed. In recent years, however, the insurgents have turned to internet messaging platforms secured by end-to-end encryption, such as Telegram, Viber, and WhatsApp, to solicit donations. On September 9, the Taliban posted a statement to its English Telegram channel…
With all eyes on Russia’s unveiling their latest nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which NATO has dubbed the “SATAN” missile, as tensions with the U.S. increase, Moscow’s most potent “weapon” may be something drastically different. The rapidly evolving geopolitical “weapon” brandished by Russia is an ever increasing stockpile of gold, as well as Russia’s native currency,…
