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What is a Zero Interest-Rate Policy? A zero interest-rate policy, ZIRP for short, is a very simple macroeconomic concept that has been used throughout the world for over two decades and in various countries including Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States with varying results. ZIRP was first used by Japan in the 1990sRead more

The Federal Reserve System, or the Fed, is the central banking system of the United States. After a series of financial panics the Federal Reserve System was created in 1913. Over time the roles and responsibilities of the Fed have expanded and evolved. During the early 2000’s the Fed launched quantitative easing programs named QERead more

Many people who are researching gold ownership as a secure and long-term investment often have two questions – what is the best and cheapest way to buy my gold and where is the safest place to store my gold? While there are many ways to both buy and store gold, some options are safer thanRead more

For the past many years Russia and China have shared a common trend – the accumulation of gold. Russia and China have been the leading official sector gold buyers over the last 15 years, but for the past few months especially the two countries have begun increasing their accumulation of gold. Let’s take a lookRead more

Numismatic coins, which are considered incredibly rare and worth more than their metal content, are no longer produced in modern times. Numismatic coins are held in high esteem by collectors and generally collectors are the only individuals who purchase these coins, classifying these types of coins, especially gold coins, not as investments in the typicalRead more

Negative interest rates are one of many telltale signs that a country is trying to boost its economy. The Bank of Japan and the European Central Bank are just two examples of several other smaller European banks that have ventured into the highly untrodden territory of negative interest rates. What exactly is a negative interestRead more

Quantitative easing, or QE for short, a monetary policy defined as the practice of introducing new money into the money supply by a central bank. The central bank carries out this process whenever it begins buying financial assets from commercial banks and other financial institutions, raising the prices of those financial assets and lowering theirRead more

We are all undoubtedly familiar with ATM cash machines as part of our daily life routine. But have you ever considered the history of the ATM, and where this technology might head in the future? The modern ATM was first born in the 1960s in the United States. According to Wikipedia, “in 1968 the networkedRead more

The US Dollar is often the subject of theories and fears about its future acceptance declining substantially—is the US Dollar headed for an acceptance crash? Will gold return to dominance? These kinds of discussions have always flourished on the Internet, but with a wave of influential billionaire investors piling into gold this year… and backingRead more

Saving for vacation, retirement, or simply for a rainy day can be hard enough on its own… yet some people believe the US Dollar itself makes it difficult for savers to get ahead over time. From the pair.offshore blog: Many central banks around the world hold dollars as a reserve currency. Under the Bretton WoodsRead more