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There seems to be a lot of outcry in this thread about employers dictating what you're allowed to invest in. From what I've seen, this is fairly common. One sm

There seems to be a lot of outcry in this thread about employers dictating what you're allowed to invest in. From what I've seen, this is fairly common. One small company I worked for forbid more than 2% ownership in a competitor. The federal government limits you (or your spouse & children) from investing more than $15,000 in a company you are working with: https://ethics.od.nih.gov/topics/deminimis.htm https://ethics.od.nih.gov/topics/deminimis.htm The federal government goes so far as limiting you from owning more than $50k of sector based mutual funds: https://ethics.od.nih.gov/topics/deminimis.htm https://ethics.od.nih.gov/topics/deminimis.htm Granted, you can own more than $15/$50k if you're willing to go through the financial disclosure bureaucratic process, but that could very well end in a change of job duties.

philipodonnell 9y ago
Most of the outcry is going to be from people who haven't worked in banks. Restrictions on personal investments are extremely common and if the article didn't have the word "cryptocurrencies" as a headline it would have gone unnoticed.
Vaskivo 9y ago
But can't you own cryptocurrencies anonymously? How are the banks going to enforce this rule?
- smcl 9y ago
  In finance it's common to have to disclose your investments to the company's Compliance department. So sure you could own a bunch of Ethereum/BTC/Doge on the sly, in the same way that you could "anonymously" own a Panamanian or Cayman Islands company invested in a bunch of things that you don't want your company to know about.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
jondubois 9y ago
It's not just employers that are enforcing constraints about what you can do with your own money; the government also does this. Like how in the US you can't invest in a startup via crowdfunding unless you have a high net worth (which is a requirement for becoming a certified investor). The government is basically saying; you're not rich, therefore you're an idiot and so you shouldn't be trusted to make your own financial decisions.

philipodonnell 9y ago

Most of the outcry is going to be from people who haven't worked in banks. Restrictions on personal investments are extremely common and if the article didn't have the word "cryptocurrencies" as a headline it would have gone unnoticed.

Vaskivo 9y ago

But can't you own cryptocurrencies anonymously? How are the banks going to enforce this rule?

smcl 9y ago
In finance it's common to have to disclose your investments to the company's Compliance department. So sure you could own a bunch of Ethereum/BTC/Doge on the sly, in the same way that you could "anonymously" own a Panamanian or Cayman Islands company invested in a bunch of things that you don't want your company to know about.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

jondubois 9y ago

It's not just employers that are enforcing constraints about what you can do with your own money; the government also does this. Like how in the US you can't invest in a startup via crowdfunding unless you have a high net worth (which is a requirement for becoming a certified investor). The government is basically saying; you're not rich, therefore you're an idiot and so you shouldn't be trusted to make your own financial decisions.