Interview with economist Richard Werner.

https://youtu.be/GkMdJwoVYAw

 

Covers many interesting topics and views. I made some summary notes for myself.

  • What we are headed towards is not so much Weimar type hyperinflation, but rather more of a Stalin type dictatorship where we lose our rights and freedoms in a controlled economy with price controls.
  • He thinks we should be looking for countries that respect the free market. There will exodus out of countries that take your rights from you (In the USA, I believe it will be more from Blue states to Red states).
  • Crypto currencies are allowed to exist to get the masses accustomed to digital money … will be easier for public to accept Central banks digital currency.
  • Crypto currencies also serve the purpose of diluting investments away from Gold. Banks want to keep gold price subdued to keep public in the dark.
  • We will lose our freedoms through digitization of currency.
  • His views on Basel 3 is that it is how Central Banks try to control banks’ ability to create money.
  • He refutes the belief that lower interest rates stimulate the economy. He has studied it and states that there is no correlation.
  • The next major collapse to occur when banks slow down credit facilities for Asset Purchases (aka non-GDP assets). Credit creation will slow to zero and then contract.

On the final point about when will the next crash occur, this caught my attention. It made me think about an article I read on the weekend regarding banks buying real estate in the UK and renting it out.  The reason they are incentivized to do this is because they make more money doing that then making mortgage loans. In Canada you can get a 5 year mortgage for under 2%. I bet the return on investment of buying to rent is much higher. How long before banks decide to make it much tougher to get mortgages by reducing credit creation? Just my thoughts.