Well I Vented Up On Forestry And Logging

[Ron Wenrich]

There's about $2.3 trillion in US cash.  The estimate is that 45% of that is outside the US.  While a good deal of purchases are already digital, there is still a lot of commerce done in cash.  Mostly with small businesses and individuals.  Hard to track.

[Ianab]

A lot of transactions, but the BIG ticket items are all electronic. Elon didnt show up with a truckload of cash when he bought Twitter, but 44 billion changed " hands".

[newoodguy78]

To me it’s a good thing the little guys still operate with cash or means other than electronically. They’re the ones keeping this country operating. What does Twitter do other than waste people’s time and promote pointless bickering between strangers?
This country would operate just fine without it, same can’t be said for the lowly working people.

[Ianab]

Of the ~$2.3 trillion that is in circulation, only about $54 billion actually exists as banknotes. That's about 2%. The rest is basically electronic. At the retail end of the economy sure there is cash circulating, so you see it every day. But it makes zero difference to the economy whether you trade small slips of paper with pictures of Presidents on them, or transfer numbers on your banks electronic ledger.  

[Cedarman]

When electronic bits change hands, the government knows it.  When dollar bills change hands only two people may know it.

[Southside]

Funny how universally valid it is
Rich Men North of Richmond

[moodnacreek]

B.B., The all American boy.

[Ron Wenrich]

I don't know where you got the $54 billion in banknotes, but the FED is showing $2.3 billion in the value of currency in circulation.  They even show the amount in each banknote. 

Federal Reserve Board - Data

[OntarioAl]

2,300 billions equal 2.3 trillion
Cheers
Al

[Ron Wenrich]

Thanks.  I corrected it.

[Ianab]

I don't know where you got the $54 billion in banknotes, but the FED is showing $2.3 billion in the value of currency in circulation.  They even show the amount in each banknote.  

Federal Reserve Board - Data

I think I read the wrong column. 54 bil is the Number of notes, not the value. I'll look a bit closer. The 2.3 trillion is the Value.

[Crusarius]

I am fine with bank fees since they usually tell you up front. you can then choose to accept them or not. What really gets me is there is a law in new york that says if an account is dormant for 3 years all funds are to be forfeit to the state.

Of course the institution has to let the owner of the account know before this happens but its annoying. I ended up closing an account that was very similar to magicmans because I kept getting notices they were going to give my money I was saving for my kids to the state because they obviously could not see the automatic transfers that were going in once a week.

Just full on BS that there is a law that the state takes what they consider forfeited money because of inactivity.

[peakbagger]

Interesting about NY, most states have laws that abandoned property goes into state departments that sweep dormant accounts into state custody, it is not forfeit to the state, the state just becomes its caretaker. If you go to this link, you can search most states National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) – The leading, trusted authority in unclaimed property. The reason they grab it, is businesses tend to leave it on the books and do not work very hard if it all to find the people who are owed.  Most businesses don't mind keeping it on the books and usually put in place some sort of proof that the person who owns the account wants it there, thus the fee.  It's a bit of tug of war between the states and private firms. Lots of folks have safe deposit boxes and when they pass, frequently the family doesn't even know about it. I read recently that the state of Maine has 3.4 billion dollars in unclaimed assets and have run out of place to store the physical assets. They are going to scan whatever paperwork came along with the physical assets and auction the physical stuff off and keep the money received in their account until someone eventually asks for it. Insurance companies and investment firms are somewhat infamous for holding onto assets like life insurance policies and investment accounts, they do not pay out unless specifically asked.  I would rather see it in state's hands with some attempt at transparency versus in the hands of business who makes money on the profits from investing. 

Once it is in the state's hands, they keep it on the books for a very long time. The problem is they can't hand it out to anyone who asks for it. The person asking has to have a legal right to claim it. If the estate was probated, the executor has to claim it and distribute it in accord with the final disposition.  If the estate was not probated, usually because there were not enough known assets, then in many states there is a small estate filing that allows small amounts to go to parties that have some sort of proof that they are related. I went through this for my two parents, one estate started to be probated while the other estate was not (no assets). I went on the website and had a check for the estate that was not probated in about 30 days. The one that started probate is on hold indefinitely as the cost to finish probate far exceeds the payout. I recognize the names of several deceased people on one list I am related, including one who died 50 years ago, with listings on the unclaimed website, in most cases the families just dont want the hassle as its small amount (the state doesnt say how much but lists categories like under $25, under $100 or over ) The state does not pay interest. I also know someone who worked for a lot of tech companies for about 20 years, they were always being bought out by other companies and changing names, he had IRAs,  profit sharing and stock options he had lost track of. Even after 20 years when he looked on the unclaimed property listings there were several listed as over $100. I think he ended up with several thousand dollars. 

The federal government does the same with things like IRS checks and Savings Bonds. They do not make it as easy but the treasury department does have some links on this page Unclaimed Money and Assets — TreasuryDirect

BTW there are profit making firms that scan the lists for each state and using public databases attempt to contact relatives and charge a fee to the relatives to tell them about unclaimed money that the family could get for free.