KTFA Members "Sunday News" 3-29-2020

KTFA:

Don961:  Benefiting from the crisis ... Is the digital dollar kicking off in the Corona era?

 March 28, 2020 11:36 PM  Mubasher - Ahmed Shawky :

The American administration intends to send checks to citizens within weeks as part of a stimulus package to address the economic consequences of the spread of Corona

But lawmakers have not said anything about what millions of people without bank accounts will do with these checks once they receive them

Writer Morgan Risks answers in an analytical view through Bloomberg Openion that people without American bank accounts will visit the checkout outlets and similar financial companies, as converting the checks into cash will cost up to 3.5 percent of the face value - money that they can Use it to meet the urgent need

This is not just a problem for these families. From the government’s point of view, sending material checks to individuals is costly and ineffective, and in crises time is the key

And when physical spacing is crucial, reducing the need for material delivery - such as checks and dollar notes - will be good for everyone

The solution: We need a digital dollar, a currency that all Americans can use to engage in the economy of the 21st century, and this crisis provides an ideal opportunity to create it

But how is it done ? Congress can give all US citizens the option to receive stimulus funds by opening digital accounts or wallets directly with the Federal Reserve - a proposal that Democrats have adopted in the Corona Response Bill

And the basic infrastructure is already there, because the central bank already provides accounts for different banks and government agencies, these accounts pay attractive interest, with an average of 1.5 percent over the past two years compared to less than 0.1 percent for regular current accounts, and the payments through them are very clear and secure: the Federal Reserve cannot default on Repayment, so deposit insurance is not necessary for both small and large balances

In order to quickly register retail customers (and companies) in new federal accounts, Congress must use private sector banks that already have the necessary internet and customer service systems (in addition to their own accounts at the central bank), and the federal bank can compensate banks for their work as an intermediary until it is available to him Time to develop his own website and support its employees

Benefits of strengthening the digital dollar

"Federal Accounts" will enjoy a wide range of long-term benefits, the most obvious of which is that they will boost financial inclusion because nearly 7 percent of US households lack a bank account, and another 19 percent have a bank account but still depend somewhat on service providers Expensive non-bankers - such as checkout outlets - for payments and other financial needs

Federal accounts will also place these families in the mainstream financial stream, with no fees or minimum balances, and the US money and payments system will become a public infrastructure similar to roads, sidewalks, public libraries, and the justice system

In addition, the Fed's bank accounts will reduce the possibility of future financial crises represented in the collective withdrawal of funds from investors by the system, and the central bank accounts will replace some unstable deposit alternatives such as money market funds and repurchase agreements, where large depositors currently tend to Store their money

And with that money stored safely in the Federal Reserve and always available, these depositors will have no reason to panic and escape, removing a major source of system vulnerability

Central bank accounts will also make the U.S. payment system faster and more efficient, because all payments between accounts will be visible in real time, it will strengthen the Fed’s ability to manage the economy, and interest rate adjustments will be transferred directly to a wide audience rather than just the banks

The American Bank can conduct a "money helicopter" (an expansionary fiscal policy that is funded by increasing the money supply and that involves printing large amounts of money and distributing them to the public in order to stimulate the economy) directly in these bank accounts for emergency stimulus

Consumers and retailers will also benefit because unlike other banks the Federal Reserve will not charge fees to merchants who accept their debit cards

The digital dollar will also maintain the dollar’s ​​position as the dominant global currency - a huge economic advantage for the United States, as China has a digital currency in the pipeline, and Facebook’s “Libra” so the dollar will likely lose its global standing if it does not compete

What about the cost?

 Beyond squeezing financial resources, the Fed's bank accounts will generate government revenue, and the central bank will expand its portfolio of government bonds and loans to banks, whose interest will almost certainly exceed the operating costs of the Fed's accounts. Surplus profits will be returns to the federal government

Certainly, banks may not welcome competition from the Federal Reserve, and the popularity of central bank accounts will reduce their deposits, which are the main source of funds

But the central bank can compensate for this by lending to banks and providing them with ample resources to continue lending to individuals and companies

It's time to bypass the United States' paper currency system and scrutiny, as the digital dollar can help improve the government's emergency response to the current and future crises

The digital dollar will also meet the increasing demand for sovereign digital money   LINK

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DELTA: There are no prices to buy and sell the dollar since 3/17... until today market closed on 17/3/2020 was 121.400...

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Samson:  Al-Rafidain: We have the financial liquidity and we will continue to distribute the employees salaries

09:08 - 29/03/2020

On Sunday, the Rafidain Bank announced that it will continue to pay the salaries of employees and owners of private outlets through its branches located in Baghdad and the provinces.

The bank’s media office said in a statement that it received “the information”, a copy of it, that “the bank has sufficient financial liquidity to distribute the employees’ salaries and the dues of the owners of the outlets offices and other categories without interruption after allocating large amounts of money to feed its branches.”

He pointed out that "the bank pays the employees' salaries through the electronic card and according to the specific times and dates set by each department." LINK

Samson:  World Tourism: 450 billion dollars in future losses

18:25 - 3/28/2020

The World Tourism Organization expected a decrease in the number of tourists in the world by 20% to 30% in the year 2020, due to the emerging Corona virus, after previously forecasting a decline of 1% to 3%.

And the specialized agency of the United Nations, based in Madrid, expected tourism revenues to decline by 300 to 450 billion dollars, or nearly a third of the 2019 revenues of 1.5 trillion dollars, according to Al-Eqtisadiah newspaper. "Tourism is among the most affected economic sectors," Zurab Pololikashvili, the agency's secretary-general, said in a statement, adding, "It is clear that millions of jobs in the sector are threatened."

The agency noted that global tourism declined by 4% during the economic crisis in 2009 and only by 4% in 2003 in the wake of the outbreak of SARS syndrome that killed 774 people around the world. The organization had expected at the beginning of the year that world tourism would grow by 3% to 4%, but had revised its forecast on March 6 due to the rapid outbreak of "Covid 19", and predicted that the decline would reach 1% to 3%.

Since reviewing expectations, more countries have imposed travel restrictions, and more flights have been canceled at a time when world governments are seeking to contain the spread of the virus, which has killed more than 23,000 people worldwide.   LINK

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Iggy:  Polygram Records, Warner Brothers, and Keebler Crackers merge to become Polly-Warner-Cracker.

Iggy:  Zippo Manufacturing, Audi Motors, Dofasco, and Dakota Mining merge to become Zip Audi Do Da.

Iggy:  "Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?”

Iggy:  An elderly lady was well-known for her faith and for her boldness in talking about it. She would stand on her front porch and shout "PRAISE THE LORD!"

Next door to her lived an atheist who would get so angry at her proclamations he would shout, "There ain't no Lord!!"

Hard times set in on the elderly lady, and she prayed for GOD to send her some assistance. She stood on her porch and shouted "PRAISE THE LORD. GOD I NEED FOOD!! I AM HAVING A HARD TIME. PLEASE LORD, SEND ME SOME GROCERIES!!"

The next morning the lady went out on her porch and noted a large bag of groceries and shouted, "PRAISE THE LORD."

The neighbor jumped from behind a bush and said, "Aha! I told you there was no Lord. I bought those groceries, God didn't."

The lady started jumping up and down and clapping her hands and said, "PRAISE THE LORD. He not only sent me groceries, but He made the devil pay for them. Praise the Lord!"