"If the banks owned it, they could vote to take all the profits (instead of a small fraction). Let me know when that happens." You are once again misled. It's

"If the banks owned it, they could vote to take all the profits (instead of a small fraction). Let me know when that happens." You are once again misled. It's authorized by congress, but it is NOT A PART OF GOVERNMENT. Unlike in the UK, Canada - and everywhere else in the world, the US Fed is not a nationalized entity. The Fed is literally owned by banks. If you founded a bank in America, you would actually be forced to buy a share in it. The banks don't 'vote to take all the profits' because the operating requirements are established by mandate from the government, and there is oversight. FYI the Fed does make a tiny profit. And this from the US 9th circuit court: "the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stated that: "The Reserve Banks are not federal instrumentalities for purposes of the FTCA [the Federal Tort Claims Act], but are independent, privately owned and locally controlled corporations." Here it is from the Fed of St. Louis: https://www.stlouisfed.org/in-plain-english/who-owns-the-federal-reserve-banks https://www.stlouisfed.org/in-plain-english/who-owns-the-fed... "While the Board of Governors is an independent government agency, the Federal Reserve Banks are set up like private corporations. Member banks hold stock in the Federal Reserve Banks and earn dividends. Holding this stock does not carry with it the control and financial interest given to holders of common stock in for-profit organizations. The stock may not be sold or pledged as collateral for loans. Member banks also appoint six of the nine members of each Bank's board of directors. " It is a highly controversial issue.