You probably already know – or at least strongly suspect – that Wall Street is rigged. And not in favor of the little guys and gals like us.
But this blog post should lay any doubt about that to rest…
Let’s start with the movie you must see if you have any money invested in the market (or need a reminder of why you yanked it out in the first place).
The Big Short is based on the New York Times best seller by Michael Lewis. The main characters are played by Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling and Steve Carell.
It recounts the story of a handful of Wall Street traders who (ultimately) made a fortune by betting against the mortgages that caused the housing bubble… and subsequent crash and Great Recession.
The movie actually manages to turn what could be a very dry topic into one that is very entertaining. You’ll actually come to understand how the complex mortgage products Wall Street created worked… and why everything crashed and burned.
And you’ll be reminded of our mass delusion of believing the housing market was invulnerable.
But the best reason to see The Big Short is for its vivid depiction of the fraud, deception, conspiracy and cover-ups that Wall Street engages in every day. And for the most part, gets away with it.
In the case of the housing market bubble and collapse, the fraud and deception were committed by everyone from would-be home buyers, to appraisers and lenders, the traders… and even the ratings agencies.
In recent years, NO major market has been immune to being rigged…
That includes currencies, commodities, precious metals, foreign exchange rates, default swaps, stocks – you name it.
A few quick examples:
- Several major banks were fined almost $6 billion for manipulating currency rates. One bank employee actually said, “If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying.”
- Banks were fined billions of dollars for rigging a key interest rate (Libor) to their favor
- In November, Barclays agreed to pay a $150 million fine for exploiting the millisecond lag between an investment order being placed and being executed. A trade that moved in your favor would often be rejected
And this is just a partial list! I don’t want to bore you with a complete laundry list of Wall Street’s sins.
Yes, some big fines have been paid – $219 billion so far just by the 15 largest global banks since 2008, from the obscene profits they made scamming us.
But almost no one goes to jail for it. Just the scene about this in The Big Short makes it worth seeing!
And if It Isn’t Wall Street Scams and Manipulation Robbing Your Retirement Savings, It’s China, Oil or Terror Attacks
The bottom line is that you have NO control over what happens to your hard-earned dollars in the market.
As I pointed out in this article, the S&P 500 has gone nowhere since the start of the century 16 years ago, when you account for inflation and fees.
Add in the taxes you’re going to pay if you’re investing in a tax-deferred account like a 401(k) or IRA, and you may never dig yourself out of this hole.
As the saying goes, the definition of insanity is continuing to do the same thing, and expecting a different result.
That’s, well – CRAZY!!!
There’s a Better Way! One that Grows Your Wealth EVERY Year – Even When the Market is Crashing
It’s called Bank On Yourself, and it’s never had a losing year in its 160-year-plus history! Not even during the Great Depression.
It lets you bypass Wall Street and gives you an unbeatable combination of advantages, which include guaranteed growth, safety, control and liquidity, along with some very juicy tax benefits.
And it will (finally) let you know the guaranteed minimum value of your nest-egg on the day you plan to tap into it… and at any point along the way.
It also lets you fire banks and finance companies and become your own source of financing for cars, vacations, business expenses and even a college education.
In fact, just by changing the way you make major purchases, the typical family could increase their lifetime wealth by an average of $500,000 – withOUT taking any additional risk.
Find out how adding Bank On Yourself to your financial plan can help you reach your financial goals and dreams – without taking any unnecessary risk.
The first step is to request a free, no-obligation Analysis and Recommendations, if you haven’t already.
You have nothing to lose and a world of financial peace of mind to gain. So do it NOW – request your free Analysis here.
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