NH Bank that offers no Social Security # accounts?

[FTL_Ian]

I'm highly interested in finding a bank that I can open a non-interest bearing account at without giving them an SS#.  Anyone found one yet?

[Kat Kanning]

Jack S. was looking for the same, but didn't find one in NH, as far as I know.

[FTL_Ian]

The no-SS people seem to think it's totally possible...

[Lex]

I would like to know this too.

[FTL_Ian]

Just say you don't have one. Insist. Make a big fuss.

That's what they say to do... my question is which bank requires the least fuss.  It'd be interesting to have someone spend a day going from bank to bank and trying to open accounts, then reporting on the results.

[FTL_Ian]

Offshore banking is definelty an option too. Especially if you just deal with debit cards and direct deposits/transfers.

I'll have to review my Harry Browne book, but do you have recommendations?

[Dreepa]

I just opened an account at a local bank.

They insist you have a SSN they also want 2 forms of GOVT ID. ?Part of the Patriot Act the guy told me. ?He said it was a huge pain in the butt.( He was reading Atlas Shrugged).

Maybe a bank that is not part of the FDIC? ?Although there are probably too few of them.

[JonM]

Credit Unions aren't part of the FDIC, they're part of the NCUA usually.

[Dreepa]

Credit Unions aren't part of the FDIC, they're part of the NCUA usually.

Yeah but they follow the almost exact same rules.  ANd of course they follow the patriot act.

Hey Ian... maybe I could get a bank account use my SSN and charge you a fee... hmm interesting business.

[Lex]

Hey Ian... maybe I could get a bank account use my SSN and charge you a fee... hmm interesting business.

Until the Fed's come knocking on your door asking what you're doing processing all these transactions.

Although, you could set-up sort of a check cashing business. Don't know what's required for that. You could also affiliate with one of those MasterCard/Visa debit cards that allow direct deposits on them.

Why not just hire a bunch of armed guards to protect your house and keep all the money in the basement in a safe. Kind of like an underground bank. And charge a fee for using your bank so that you can pay the gaurds.

[Dreepa]

Hey Ian... maybe I could get a bank account use my SSN and charge you a fee... hmm interesting business.

Until the Fed's come knocking on your door asking what you're doing processing all these transactions.

Although, you could set-up sort of a check cashing business. Don't know what's required for that. You could also affiliate with one of those MasterCard/Visa debit cards that allow direct deposits on them.

Why not just hire a bunch of armed guards to protect your house and keep all the money in the basement in a safe. Kind of like an underground bank. And charge a fee for using your bank so that you can pay the gaurds.

I guess he wants a checking account.
I tell people who don't like banks to just use cash.

[FTL_Ian]

Yeah, cash is king.

[Russell Kanning]

There was one in Thayne WY that used to. I had friends that had accounts with no ss#, but they said they didn't do it anymore. I opened it with the wrong #. But it seems the patriot acts are closing in on us.
I really like the idea of using each other to deposit checks etc. There is no reason we can't charge money back and forth.

[Pat McCotter]

http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs11/12620/money.htm

Money Services Business Registration, Reporting, and Customer Identification Requirements

The term money services business (MSB) refers to five distinct types of financial services providers: currency dealers or exchangers; check cashers; issuers of traveler's checks, money orders, or stored value (prepaid debit cards); sellers or redeemers of traveler's checks, money orders, or stored value; and money transmitters. The five types of financial services are complementary and are often provided together at a common location. MSBs have grown to provide a set of financial products that customers traditionally relied on banks to provide. For example, an MSB customer who receives a paycheck can take the check to a check casher to have it converted to cash. The customer can then purchase money orders to pay bills. Finally, the customer may choose to send funds to relatives abroad, using the services of a money transmitter. All these services are available without the customer needing to establish an account relationship with a bank or credit union. These businesses perform valuable services for a wide array of individuals.

MSBs have been subject to currency transaction reporting rules since the inception of the BSA in 1970;23 subsequently, additional regulatory obligations have been added. In 1988 Congress enacted Section 5324 of the BSA, requiring sellers of monetary instruments for $3,000 or more in currency to verify the identity of the purchasers. The Money Laundering Suppression Act of 1994 mandated a system of registration for MSBs. This was considered a necessary first step toward identifying a universe of financial service providers that was largely unregulated at the federal level, extremely diverse both culturally and in size, and generally unknown to federal regulators beyond the handful of large, well-known corporate entities. FinCEN proposed implementing registration regulations in 1997 with a proposal to require the filing of SARs, and FinCEN finalized the rules in 1999 with a phased-in implementation period so that all initial registrations for existing MSBs were required to be filed by December 31, 2001. MSBs also were required to begin filing SARs in January 2002. In April 2002, in response to the mandate of section 352 of the USA PATRIOT Act that financial institutions institute anti-money laundering programs, FinCEN issued a final rule requiring MSBs to establish anti-money laundering programs reasonably designed to prevent such businesses from being used to facilitate money laundering and finance terrorism.

FinCEN's regulations require most, but not all, MSBs to register with the Department of the Treasury every 2 years. Certain money services businesses are exempt from that registration requirement, including U.S. Postal Service outlets; businesses that are considered MSBs solely as issuers, sellers, or redeemers of stored value; and branch offices and agents of an MSB.24

With the exception of check cashers and issuers and sellers or redeemers of stored value, all MSBs are required to report suspicious transactions. All MSBs are required to establish written, risk-based, anti-money laundering programs; to file currency transaction reports for cash transactions of more than $10,000; and to collect and maintain customer information for purchases of bank checks or drafts, cashier's checks, money orders, or traveler's checks of $3,000 to $10,000 inclusive, as well as for transmittals of funds in the amount of $3,000 or more. The civil penalty for noncompliance with the program, recordkeeping, or reporting requirements of the BSA is a fine up to $5,000 for each violation; the criminal penalty is up to 5 years' imprisonment.

Source: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

[Russell Kanning]

At walmart they ask for your info above $1000 but they don't check ID and if you refuse to give them a ssn they will just fill in the blank that way. They have trouble keeping track of "structuring" transactions also, even if they wanted to, since they don't have an account for you and have so many employees.