@silverbug2000 This is good info, structuring transactions is illegal and even Politicians are going to jail for it.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-cubs-marc-hamid-skybox-trial-0723-met-20160722-story.html
However there is no such thing as a SAR placed on your account, or at least there shouldn't be.
Once the teller fills out the SAR it is sent to FinCEN. It is up to FinCEN to decide what to do, but no teller is ever supposed to know about any sort of SAR or other activity once the form is complete.
It's not supposed to be on or in or anywhere near the account. Even a branch manager should not have access to these things. It's essentially an affidavit from the teller to the feds. If you know of a bank that is recording these things anywhere in a customer record, you need to contact FinCEN right away.
You have to understand that the reason for a SAR is to prevent collusion between people in a local bank branch, and drug dealers, gangsters, etc. If a branch manager or teller has access to these then any sort of relationship could totally spoil an investigation.
Easiest way to avoid a SAR is to not keep your money in a bank in the USA.
Now days there isn't any valid reason for you to be keeping enough funds in a bank in the USA that a SAR or a CTR would ever apply to you.
There are stable blockchain backed crypto currencies such as bitUSD, SBD(currently trying to stabilize) and Tether and with just a few minutes of planning you can load these directly onto debit cards for spending on an as needed basis. Otherwise just let the blockchain be your bank.
Oh one more thing. You are far more likely to be derisked than to be closed for too many SARs. With your account open and the tellers happily filling out SARs it provides visibility to the feds as to what you're doing. They want you to keep banking this way.
Banks however need to balance risk and so if you're an ex-pat or have family, friends or relatives on the SDN list, or you happen to take a vacation to some country the USA doesn't like. You can be derisked and find yourself completely stranded with no money and no recourse and no ability to do anything about it.
http://www.americanbanker.com/news/bank-technology/lexisnexis-elliptic-want-to-make-bitcoin-safe-for-banks-1090573-1.html
If anyone is interested in hearing more about blockchain banking, vote this up and I'll probably make a blog posting about it soon.
Thanks for the info @williambanks . I have been reading a lot of your posts and comments lately. I like your research, transparency and commenting. You have a new follower in me!
@jacor , thanks! That really made my day!
Ok because the question got 42 upvotes, I realized I needed to make a couple of posts on the topic.
The first is a guide for people wanting to transition away from the banking system...
https://steemit.com/steemit/@williambanks/your-bank-is-an-anachronism
The second post will be coming in a few days and will be targeting anyone who runs a bank or finance company, sort of a 101 on how they can become useful to the world again.
@silverbug2000 I mentioned you in the article and gave a shout out of thanks! Want to say thanks again! I'm following you now.
What is the SDN list?
Darn good question...
As part of its enforcement efforts, OFAC publishes a list of individuals and companies owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, targeted countries. It also lists individuals, groups, and entities, such as terrorists and narcotics traffickers designated under programs that are not country-specific. Collectively, such individuals and companies are called "Specially Designated Nationals" or "SDNs." Their assets are blocked and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them.
Source...
https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/SDN-List/Pages/default.aspx
Actual list (takes awhile to load because it's rather long)
https://www.treasury.gov/ofac/downloads/sdnlist.txt
So it's actually an offence to transact with the people on this list? Punishable by law? Do you have to break the law to get on it? How do you get off it?
@wish Depends on the situation. As a normal business doing business, like say a grocery store. It's a non-issue. But if you deal in money or securities it is required that you report any and all transactions. You can "do business" with them, but you are not allowed to release funds or assets without approval of OFAC
You could probably put whistleblowers and Govt activists in that category as well.
@ajavajive Well we couldn't, but I'm sure the feds can & do.
This is why i dont trust banks and stock piling bitcoins and Ripple XRP
@dharmakirti
Uhhh Ripple probably isn't the best currency to hold if you're a cryptoanarchist. http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/seven-banks-kick-off-ripples-blockchain-network-including-santander-ubs-unicredit-90-more-1566894
They're all but wholly owned by Santander.
Thanks for sharing this information @williambanks. I could have gone into more detail on this post. Put this up on the fly just to see what would happen. Turns out this thing is for real. Thanks for sharing.
@silverbug2000 Glad I could help! Sorry for taking over your thread. Like I said you did a great job of warning people though! The dangers are real.
Several years back they turned us from Depositors into investors, meaning that when Deutsche Bank crashes and all the derivatives are exposed, FDIC will pay the banks first, then we the little people are left holding nothing. Did we really ever think they cared about us? Come on, Hitlery is going to re-install Glass Steagall even though all the damage is done. LMAO.
@derrick1974 I don't disagree with you on depositors into investors. However have you checked how our investment is doing lately? https://www.treasury.gov/initiatives/financial-stability/reports/Pages/TARP-Tracker.aspx
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubled_Asset_Relief_Program#Participants
It's pretty much been paid back according to that.
I'm not saying this was a good thing at all. However the taxpayers aren't on the hook for it anymore according to all the information I can find anywhere.
In the meantime the US Govt does own metric craptons of what amounts to convertible debentures in these orgs that the banks can either buy back at market rate, or the govt can sell on the open market which will convert those warrants and dilute the companies shares.
Nevertheless, hardly a penny ever went to it's intended purposes which was to allow people to refi their homes while the banks write off the losses into a prepaid sheet paid for by the US Taxpayer.
My investments? Hold on, let me go check Kitco. ;-)
Down $25, looks like they are in there pushing the paper, good thing I have physical. I only hold it just incase, my real investments are in home gardening and long term solutions. Can't eat gold and silver. . . .
And using Treasury.gov and Wikipedia, is almost as bad as using Snopes. Does anyone still believe anything they say? Rome is burning and Nero is out golfing again. . . . .
Well Treasury.gov was used because it would be considered a primary source by any definition of the word, They may spin stuff , but they don't tend to lie.
Wikipedia was chosen for accessibility of the information.
Also, yes your investment. If you live here, then it's your government that did this. If you voted for any of the people that pushed it through, then it was most definitely your investment. If your guy didn't make it that year, you need to ask yourself why. If you didn't vote, you have no right to complain.
Should definitely do that soon. I'm probably an outlier here as I'm not sold on the whole cryptocurrency idea but sounds like you know what you're talking about, so I'd look forward to learning about that.