Covered at Reason 24/7: Security Firm Preparing for Cypriot Banks to Reopen

Credit: Reason

The British security firm G4S is preparing for Cyprus' banks to reopen and has been helping Cypriot authorities to transport cash to banks and ATMs. Banks are supposed to open tomorrow after being closed for over a week amid fears of a run on the banks. The Cyprus crisis has left the euro at a four-month low, and the Cypriot finance minister has said Cyprus Popular Bank's wealthiest depositors could lose 80 percent of their money. 

From Reuters:

A British security firm that transports cash for Cypriot banks is working round the clock, sending teams out with police protection to stock bank machines and readying guards for when banks reopen on Thursday.

The world's largest security firm, G4S, moves cash and will provide guards for Cypriot lenders including Bank of Cyprusand Cyprus Popular Bank, the two biggest, which are to be combined and see large depositors' accounts frozen under a bailout agreed at the weekend.

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Comments

[Francisco d Anconia]

Predictions?

[Cheradenine Zakalwe]

Shriek will write something stupid today.

[darius404]

Prediction met! In record time!

[A Secret Band of Robbers]

Bitcoin will hit $90 any minute.

[Death Rock and Skull]

Gosh, the world's "leaders" sure are intelligent policy makers. They just run their mouth a little and then this happens.

[Francisco d Anconia]

I mean ya gotta pull your money out, right?

[CampingInYourPark]

Seeing as they aren't going to allow people to withdraw what they want, they will instead receive whatever the EU has deemed as a proper allowance.

[Episiarch]

This whole Cyprus thing is just the most delicious example and reminder of what government is: force and theft. It's just so crystal clear in this case, that even the biggest "law and order" fool can see the whole charade for what it is. I love it.

[Palin's Buttplug]

Private banks lost the money - the EU and Cyprus governments just negotiated the depositors losses.

Without them it just would have been an old-fashioned bank run and failure like back in the 19th century free banking era of the US.

[Jordan]

An old-fashioned bank run and failure is exactly what needs to happen. Let's keep that moral hazard going!

[Jordan]

Oh wait. I forgot I was talking to the uber-capitalist, who never met a government regulation, bailout, or intervention he didn't support.

[Anonymous Coward]

Nice try shriek, you lying cunt, but the Cyprus incident began when the Euro-crats gave holders of Greek bonds new bonds at a loss of 78.5% of their original value in the Greek bailout deal.

And the longest, and worst bank run in American history was overseen and worsened by FDR between 1930 and 1933.

[Palin's Buttplug]

Yes, Cyprus banks were loaded with Greek debt that was destined to fail due to profligate Greek spending by the state.

And FDR didn't worsen the GD, the Fed did.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Fuck Shreeeeek, I can see how you scored 92% on that libertarian test. You are Team Orange all the way.

[darius404]

You're wrong, it's the Pluggertarian Purity Test. And OB's score isn't that great, Obama scores AT LEAST a 93% on the PPT.

[Rights-Minimalist Autocrat]

Fractional reserve banking isn't coming out smelling like a rose, either.

[robc]

???

Failure is a sign of success.

[Rights-Minimalist Autocrat]

I'm not even an anti-fractional guy. But this is just ugly.

[robc]

Businesses fail. Its a sign the system is working.

Of course, this system is broken, but Im not blaming fractional reserve banking.

A free market is going to have bank failures.

[Stormy Dragon]

The government didn't steal anything from the Cypriots. They stole $13 billion from the rest of the EU and gave it to the Cypriots, who are only pissed that they're not getting more stolen money.

I don't know why the people here can't get it through their heads: the Cypriots are not the victims of theft, they are the beneficiaries of it.

[Palin's Buttplug]

Read this comment - peanut gallery.

[CampingInYourPark]

"I don't know why the people here can't get it through their heads: the Cypriots are not the victims of theft, they are the beneficiaries of it."

I don't know why some people can't get it through their heads that a depositor isn't defined as a Cypriot.

[Ray]

Or that Cypriot depositors might prefer keeping their money to preventing their precious government from defaulting.

[Stormy Dragon]

The Cypriot government isn't defaulting. This isn't a government bailout, it's a bank bailout.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Cyprus dodged a disorderly sovereign default and unprecedented exit from the euro by bowing to demands from creditors to shrink its banking system in exchange for 10 billion euros ($13 billion) of aid"

[CampingInYourPark]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/.....fault.html

[Stormy Dragon]

That bloomberg article is wrong. Cyprus isn't default on it's sovereign debt. GREECE defaulted on their sovereign debt. Two Cyprian banks which were holding a lot of Greek bonds are now undercapitalized. What should be happening is that ALL of that recapitalization should be done by the creditors of those banks (including the depositors). Instead, the EU is paying for it with bailout funds from elsewhere in the EU to reduce the losses.

The EU shouldn't be bailing out the banks to begin with, but if you believe that, then the question is not "why are the depositors losing so much money?" but "why aren't the depositors losing even more money?" A lot of people here seem to think that if the EU just stayed out, the depositors would get to keep everything, and that's simply not the case.

[CampingInYourPark]

"The Cypriot government isn't defaulting. This isn't a government bailout, it's a bank bailout."

Just to emphasize how stupid this statement is, ask yourself where the funds to meet the EU conditions for a bailout are coming from.

[robc]

I dont know why you are opposing think favoring the free market is equal to sadism.

[Stormy Dragon]

As I've said three times now, you can favor the free market and still emphasize with people who lose their savings in bank collapses. I wasn't referring to all people who want to let the banks go under; I want to let the banks go under.

I was referring people like you who derive pleasure for suffering and are indicating they will be upset if these banks end up unwinding with out enough rioting to satisfy their voyeurism.

[robc]

emphasize

You are an idiot.

[robc]

I was referring people like you who derive pleasure for suffering and are indicating they will be upset if these banks end up unwinding with out enough rioting to satisfy their voyeurism.

Where does this come from?

If the banks can unwind without government interference (including in the past) then more power to them.

[robc]

Where does this come from?

Answering my own question: projection.

[Stormy Dragon]

If the banks can unwind without government interference (including in the past) then more power to them.

See, all that robc demands is that we figure out timetravel, go back to the dawn of humanity, and implement libertopia throughout the whole of human civilization and then he'll be perfectly happy. And no, his complaints shouldn't at all be treated as ridiculous complaining just for the sake of complaining rather than a realistic policy perscription for how libertarians should propose handling this situation.

[robc]

Niven's Law #18: Not responsible for advice not taken.

The governments were advised to not get involved. Not my responsibility that they didnt listen.

realistic policy perscription

"Get the fuck out of the way" is always realistic.

[Stormy Dragon]

Again, this isn't a "I want small government" thing. It's an "I enjoy watching cities being destroyed by riots" thing.

[robc]

Bullshit.

[darius404]

Look Stormy, when I want cities destroyed I'll just go and get my own Godzilla, ok?

[Palin's Buttplug]

I wonder if large depositors have to show up to find out what their adjusted balance is.

[Cheradenine Zakalwe]

You have to withdraw money and read your receipt to know what's in the account.

[Rich]

"And ... it's gone!"

[Palin's Buttplug]

Maybe the best SP ever. Tied with the blood squirting from the Virgin Mary's ass and Randy's alcoholism.

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder when that straw between your ears will transmute into brain matter.

[LTC(ret) John]

Being Holy Week and all, that would be a fine example of a miracle, yes?