this post was submitted on 24 Jun 2024
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[โ€“] 3volver 41 points 4 days ago (27 children)

Fractional-reserve banking. Most people have no idea what it is, probably a good thing. You could argue that it's not a "secret", but most people aren't aware of it regardless. I don't think most people would be fond of grinding for $15 an hour if they knew banks could just lend money they don't actually have. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fractional-reserve_banking

[โ€“] [email protected] 8 points 4 days ago (20 children)

I'm always surprised how few people know about this. The banks are literally gaining interest on money they never had. It should be illegal.

[โ€“] Godric 3 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Wait till you hear about how your bank account gains interest, hooo boy

[โ€“] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I'm horrified to ask, but what do you mean?

[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago

Probably something about how your bank account only earns interest because banks can lend out a fraction of that to make money. Otherwise they would just be like a vault service who you have to pay to keep your money safe (basically negative interest).

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