7 ms·

If the Fed would put Coinstar type machines in Post Offices without charging a fee or taking a cut, I think they would find a lot more people who are willing to

If the Fed would put Coinstar type machines in Post Offices without charging a fee or taking a cut, I think they would find a lot more people who are willing to get their coins back into circulation. It would have to be cheaper on an ongoing basis than constantly minting coins. Wrapping coins and exchanging them at a bank is just too tedious and time consuming.

belltaco 6y ago
The Fed's stated goal is to create jobs, not destroy them.
- stepstop 6y ago
  > The Fed's stated goal is to create jobs, not destroy them. That’s not true. Here’s the truth: https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed.htm https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed.htm
  - kbutler 6y ago
    https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/what-economic-goals-does-federal-reserve-seek-to-achieve-through-monetary-policy.htm https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/what-economic-goals-does... The Congress has directed the Fed to conduct the nation's monetary policy to support three specific goals: * maximum sustainable employment, * stable prices, and * moderate long-term interest rates. These goals are sometimes referred to as the Fed's "mandate." [hn formatting added]
    - stepstop 6y ago
      Thank you. My mistake, not sure how I missed that word!
  - greesil 6y ago
    I think they are referring to quantitative easing.
  - SllX 6y ago
    Right there in your link: > conducts the nation’s monetary policy to promote maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates in the U.S. economy; (Emphasis mine) Every single bullet that follows either restates the first bullet or is tertiary.
partiallypro 6y ago
A large number of banks have coin machines inside that will take unrolled coins and deposit them into your account for free. Coinstar unfortunately largely targets people that don't have bank accounts.
- pengaru 6y ago
  Banks I used back in the midwest growing up always had change machines and it was a routine to bring in our change whenever the container got full, they'd turn it into cash or deposit it free of charge. It seems way less common in CA, at least according to my experience.
  - andrewf 6y ago
    I've deposited loose coins at a couple of Wells Fargo branches in San Francisco, they had counting machines behind the counter.
- tomschlick 6y ago
  Pro tip: Coinstar wont take a cut if you get it as a gift card. The times I've used them I just opt for an Amazon Gift card or one for the local grocery chain that I'm already going to be spending money at.
  - ilikepi 6y ago
    That's great for Amazon, and for people who shop at Amazon...
    - tomschlick 6y ago
      Right, so > 75% of online shoppers... https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/19/more-than-75-percent-of-us-online-consumers-shop-on-amazon-most-of-the-time.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/19/more-than-75-percent-of-us-o...
  - pxx 6y ago
    That's, uh, taking a cut, albeit a smaller one. You'll lose the cashback or other rewards that you would've gotten for using a credit card. Gift cards can also commonly be obtained for under face value.
dzhiurgis 6y ago
Can’t you use self checkout? Also who the hell uses cash.
- jkepler 6y ago
  > Also who the hell uses cash. Who uses cash? The unbanked and underbanked, about 55 million adults in the USA, approximately 22% of the US households, according to the US Federal Reserve. In the USA that often includes folks like the homeless, or people from drastically lower socioeconomic classes, as well as undocumented workers, those who don't trust the banking system, and those without government IDs. [1] This also includes anyone with strong needs for transactional anonymity, such as the Hong Kong protesters who bought transit tickets with cash so the police wouldn't be able to trace their ticket purchases/rides and arrest them based on their having gone to the protest location. [2] Then there are other countries, such as Germany and India, where the majority of transactions are cash---though the past few years it would seem governments are increasingly trying to eliminate cash or cast suspicion on those who prefer Cash's anonymity. [3] [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbanked https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbanked [2] https://qz.com/1642441/extradition-law-why-hong-kong-protesters-didnt-use-own-metro-cards/ https://qz.com/1642441/extradition-law-why-hong-kong-protest... [3] https://www.corbettreport.com/the-war-on-cash-a-country-by-country-guide/ https://www.corbettreport.com/the-war-on-cash-a-country-by-c...
  - dzhiurgis 6y ago
    Sounds like these shithole countries need to solve something else first.

belltaco 6y ago

The Fed's stated goal is to create jobs, not destroy them.

stepstop 6y ago
> The Fed's stated goal is to create jobs, not destroy them. That’s not true. Here’s the truth: https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed.htm https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed.htm
- kbutler 6y ago
  https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/what-economic-goals-does-federal-reserve-seek-to-achieve-through-monetary-policy.htm https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/what-economic-goals-does... The Congress has directed the Fed to conduct the nation's monetary policy to support three specific goals: * maximum sustainable employment, * stable prices, and * moderate long-term interest rates. These goals are sometimes referred to as the Fed's "mandate." [hn formatting added]
  - stepstop 6y ago
    Thank you. My mistake, not sure how I missed that word!
- greesil 6y ago
  I think they are referring to quantitative easing.
- SllX 6y ago
  Right there in your link: > conducts the nation’s monetary policy to promote maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates in the U.S. economy; (Emphasis mine) Every single bullet that follows either restates the first bullet or is tertiary.

partiallypro 6y ago

A large number of banks have coin machines inside that will take unrolled coins and deposit them into your account for free. Coinstar unfortunately largely targets people that don't have bank accounts.

pengaru 6y ago
Banks I used back in the midwest growing up always had change machines and it was a routine to bring in our change whenever the container got full, they'd turn it into cash or deposit it free of charge. It seems way less common in CA, at least according to my experience.
- andrewf 6y ago
  I've deposited loose coins at a couple of Wells Fargo branches in San Francisco, they had counting machines behind the counter.
tomschlick 6y ago
Pro tip: Coinstar wont take a cut if you get it as a gift card. The times I've used them I just opt for an Amazon Gift card or one for the local grocery chain that I'm already going to be spending money at.
- ilikepi 6y ago
  That's great for Amazon, and for people who shop at Amazon...
  - tomschlick 6y ago
    Right, so > 75% of online shoppers... https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/19/more-than-75-percent-of-us-online-consumers-shop-on-amazon-most-of-the-time.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/19/more-than-75-percent-of-us-o...
- pxx 6y ago
  That's, uh, taking a cut, albeit a smaller one. You'll lose the cashback or other rewards that you would've gotten for using a credit card. Gift cards can also commonly be obtained for under face value.

dzhiurgis 6y ago

Can’t you use self checkout? Also who the hell uses cash.

jkepler 6y ago
> Also who the hell uses cash. Who uses cash? The unbanked and underbanked, about 55 million adults in the USA, approximately 22% of the US households, according to the US Federal Reserve. In the USA that often includes folks like the homeless, or people from drastically lower socioeconomic classes, as well as undocumented workers, those who don't trust the banking system, and those without government IDs. [1] This also includes anyone with strong needs for transactional anonymity, such as the Hong Kong protesters who bought transit tickets with cash so the police wouldn't be able to trace their ticket purchases/rides and arrest them based on their having gone to the protest location. [2] Then there are other countries, such as Germany and India, where the majority of transactions are cash---though the past few years it would seem governments are increasingly trying to eliminate cash or cast suspicion on those who prefer Cash's anonymity. [3] [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbanked https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbanked [2] https://qz.com/1642441/extradition-law-why-hong-kong-protesters-didnt-use-own-metro-cards/ https://qz.com/1642441/extradition-law-why-hong-kong-protest... [3] https://www.corbettreport.com/the-war-on-cash-a-country-by-country-guide/ https://www.corbettreport.com/the-war-on-cash-a-country-by-c...
- dzhiurgis 6y ago
  Sounds like these shithole countries need to solve something else first.