So if banks are doing so well, why the need for zero and negative interest rates!?

Something does not add up...

What banks actually keep all their reserves backed in gold? 

Just curious..

I would worry too much putting money outside the country, I still feel the US greenback is the safest bet, just behind gold and precious metals of course, but in terms of stability the greenback has them all beat in that regard and I think that will hold true for quite some time to come. I do business with a few out of country banks such as Barclays and HSBC. My dealings with them are minimal and while I have noticed Barclays like to balance chase, HSBC has been relatively generous with promotional interest rates and rewards programs. HSBC has also been stable with their credit lines and haven't balance chased me yet.

The companies I have had the most problems with balance chasing have been Barclays, AMEX, Citi, FirstBankcard, and Citizens Bank. 

The companies I deal with that have never resorted to balance chasing are Discover, Capital One, HSBC, Credit One, and Merrick.

Balance chasing is when a lender (usually a credit card company) will extend you a large credit line with a very generous zero percent interest rate lasting anywhere from 12-24 months. Naturally you will use this free money and pay it off towards the end, however the vindictive card companies will often times chase your balance by reducing your credit line within a few hundred dollars of your balance. Obviously this takes a serious toll on your credit score, even though it shouldn't and the practice should be illegal, however as you pay off large chunks of that balance to pay it off before the promotion, instead of reward you they will whack your credit line every time you make a big payment - hence the term "chasing the balance". It is a very crooked and predatory tactic used by card companies to lower your credit score and take away any incentive to pay off the balance before the end of the promotional rate. I still pay them off but it leaves an odd record at that point because it will always show you at one time borrowed more than your credit line, even though your credit line was higher originally it does not seem to show that in credit reports. I am sure it's still a gray area but a lot of lenders do this for the sole purpose of lowering your score and preventing another card issuer from swooping in and giving you another generous zero percent offer. 

People whom are not, nor even been self employed just don't understand the imporatance of liquidity in the business world. A lot of people say they only carry one or two cards but as a business owner you'll need a heck of a lot more than that as you never want all your eggs in one basket when a card issuer or lender wants to start rocking the boat - and trust me they love to do this! I was smart and collected all the cards I wanted straight away so I am diversified. If one starts acting up I won't let them earn any money by paying that card in full while utilizing it, rather than closing it. The lenders who take the most risk and do not balance chase get all the love, these lenders I will allow equipment purchases and business expenses to carry while they are paid off in smaller chunks and the lender makes a fair amount of money while providing me a service at a price I am comfortable with, or I wouldn't have entered it to start with! It is the companies who balance chase and try to trap the customer I watch closely, you can never really trust a company once they have gone down that road so you always have to be aware that they have that flaw and not to trust them with balances. 

My concern with banks and lenders is that the Government claims it is stress testing the biggest banks regularly, so if anything were to go wrong the Government is basically the ones who allowed to to happen since they are supposedly stress testing these banks regularly. If all of a sudden banks and lenders need zero and negative interest rates that certainly is not being reflected on the current test being performed by the Fed! That is why it's so spooky... The Fed claims everything is sunshine and butterflies with the banks, yet Trump is saying they need zero and negative interest rates!? That to me is a serious red flag, like the banks are maxed out and they need another zero percent interest card to transfer their debts, while everyone else has to suck it up and pay them down or risk interest charges.

Here is one for all you Gold lovers out there!

Apparently counterfeit gold bars are showing up in the vaults of J.P. Morgan! They claim the gold bars are pure gold (slightly less pure) but have been stamped and look so real that the banks aren't even catching them!

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/counterfeit-stamped-gold-found-jpmorgan-000530667.html

That is a damn good question Rastus!

I searched the entire article and they never quite explained that important little piece of information outside of saying it come out of China thru Hong Kong! Okay? But HOW!? LOL!