Is Your Money Safe in a Bank?

Some recent bank failures have Americans wondering if their money would be safer somewhere else. We break down the actual risks!

Two Cents is hosted by Philip Olson, CFP® and Julia Lorenz-Olson, AFC®
Directors: Katie Graham & Andrew Matthews
Written by: Julia Lorenz-Olson, AFC®
Executive Producer: Amanda Fox
Produced by: Katie Graham
Edited & Animated by: Dano Johnson
Fact checker: Yvonne McGreevy
Executive in Charge for PBS: Maribel Lopez
Director of Programming for PBS: Gabrielle Ewing
Assistant Director of Programming for PBS: John Campbell

Images by: Shutterstock
Music by: APM
Two Cents is produced by Spotzen for PBS

[shinrasboy]

I work for a bank. The amount of people who have come to sign up after they lost all their money in a fire/flash flood/robbery is extraordinarily high. When asked why they don’t just open a savings before, they would go on some vague description about not trusting the banks. It made me painfully, painfully sad..

[imWillJ]

bank teller : i said your money was in a safe in the bank, not safe in a bank.

[hideyable]

The opening scene is reminiscent of those people who keep cash binders to track their spending. It may be that I'm from a country without a tipping culture & that's heavily reliant on bank cards (rather than using cash) but to me it's such a risk to have that much lying around. Not necessarily being burgled but your kids "borrowing" it or a house fire/natural disaster where you can't save it too.

[beltingtokra]

In the UK deposits in each institution should be insured to a certain amount. Spread your money around so if something happens with one, you can still buy stuff.

[gabrielbruhnr]

If you have that much money sitting in your bank account, that means that you are not investing your money properly. Money sitting in the bank doesn't really do anything for you because interest rates are so slow. It's better to have $1 million in a place where it can make you 5% on returns rather than having that $1 million sitting in your bank account making you 0.5% returns.

[gamingnerdgirlz]

I bank with a Credit union they offer Free Checking and Savings Account. for members the fee for the membership is a one time and you get it back if you close the account. no other monthly fees. i love it over BIG banks. FDIC coverage to is a bonus.

[ringoffire]

2:50 Wait, so in 2008, when a bank like Bear Stearns failed, people weren’t mad that the gov gave them money per se, but rather that the gov OVERPAID their obligated requirements? Wouldn’t it just be better if the gov is required to pay ALL of it, but force the banks to pay higher premiums in an intelligent distribution (in the same mindset of universal healthcare “insurance”)? In the end, unless a ton of banks are failing at once, wouldn’t that way mean the gov is getting more money from premiums than losses from bank failures?

[MillionaireHouseholdFinance]

I agree, you should always check into insurance from your bank, credit union, or banking institution. It's always a good idea to do your homework, especially on smaller banks or credit unions.

[fleurdepapaye]

I always love the information delivered by both of you. Thank you so much guys, you and your team made great job!

[ceymiss]

It's been so long since I've watched a Two Cents video (I can't relate to most video topics because I don't live in the US) and even though I know he's the same person Philip looks like a new person to me. I think the last time I watched Julia was pregnant.

[eokii]

In places like 🇱🇧 Lebanon where there are limits on how much you could withdraw or access, it would make sense to keep some physical cash somewhere safe.

[cheeselover]

A huge factor though of bank runs in the past was due to how bankruptcy was generated because banks invested heavily in local ventures which has ripple effects (e.g. bad crops). Things are globalized now so banks have more diversified investments. a la less Eggs in one basket. SVB wasn't that savvy in diversifying investments, iirc.

[nezzee]

$250k is fine for non-business use, but is WAY too little for modern business use. Payroll could easily surpass this amount, so now the options are to either juggle multiple banks, or deal with risk. And what generay ends up happening is that companies are just very fast at rushing money out of the bank when they have concerns, which is exactly NOT what you want to have be the case...

[dotpenji]

I found this video really informative about banking insurance. Could you explain the main differences between FDIC and SIPC coverage, especially when it comes to different types of financial instruments?

[salmalaachiri]

Love your channel, i'd love to see you make a video about travel expenses and budgeting for travels! ❤

[Number_]

No, the banks are not safe! There is a bail in law that states a bank can take your savings without your permission and give you stock in the bank in its place. They take your money and 'sell ' you worthless stock in a failed company. The bank.

[MattCRHughes]

2:57 “In that particular case, [the government decided moral hazard was the lesser of two evils, just like it did in 2008].”

*Mario coin noises*

[Zucco-onss]

Great video guys! I love your way of making content about complex issues. Here in Argentina we had a lot of events in history that made us don't trust in banks. Here inflation is a very big problem that affects every argentinian financial plans. Have you guys ever talked about financial strategies to try to overcome high inflation scenarios? Greetings from Argentina! 🇦🇷

[AbrahamZilberstein]

Man how I love this lovely couple and their wonderful channel

[walacerosalaurindo]

Two cents is absolutely one of the best channels on YouTube