Joe Withrow's Blog, page 6

The Bitcoin ETF Misdirection

Yesterday we examined the history of Bitcoin’s public narrative… and I suggested that the new ETFs are a misdirection play. That is to say, there is a hidden agenda underlying the Bitcoin ETFs.

This agenda is why the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was openly hostile towards Bitcoin for years… but suddenly changed its tune. The power structure behind the SEC has two primary goals here.

The first goal is simply to funnel people into the Bitcoin ETFs so that they don’t buy and self-custody any bitcoins themselves.

It’s important to understand that these Bitcoin ETFs are cash-settled. That means investors have no ownership interest in the underlying asset.

And that’s an important point.

Bitcoin is critically important as a reserve asset in and of itself. These ETFs are just vehicles that provide dollar-based price exposure to Bitcoin.

So the more people who buy the ETFs, the more bitcoins the power structure will be able to aggregate into their own custodianship and effectively take out of circulation. They don’t want us building resilient circular economies at the local level, as we discussed yesterday.

The second goal is to gain more influence over the price of Bitcoin.

That’s another reason why the SEC required the ETFs to be cash-settled – so no bitcoins actually trade hands when an investor buys or sells ETF units. Then the Bitcoin ETFs can pass on all the transaction costs and exchange fees to all investors.

This creates a dynamic where institutions can execute large buy or sell orders for Bitcoin without being on the hook for the associated fees they would otherwise incur.

Here’s what I mean…

Let’s say an institution buys 100,000 units in a Bitcoin ETF. Had they bought those bitcoins directly from an exchange, they would have to pay large transaction and exchange-related fees for doing so.

But by purchasing units in the ETF, it’s the ETF operators who are responsible for buying the bitcoins directly – not the institution. And the ETF operator then spreads out those transaction expenses across all ETF investors as part of the fund’s expense structure. This negatively impacts the performance of every ETF unit in circulation.

So with the Bitcoin ETFs, institutions can pass on their transaction expenses to smaller investors. It’s a sleight-of-hand play.

This removes the costs associated with outsized Bitcoin purchases, which creates a situation where a motivated institution like, say, the European Central Bank (ECB) could engage in massive Bitcoin ETF transactions specifically to create artificial volatility and move the price.

Needless to say, I’m not a fan of the Bitcoin ETFs. They are not an invitation to adoption… they are a tool for misdirection.

The good news is that the ETFs have little impact on the Bitcoin network itself. It’s still uncontrollable.

So my suggestion is that we not play their game.

If you’re interested in Bitcoin, buy it directly and hold it in a self-custody wallet where you retain full control. And then don’t worry about the price.

Bitcoin isn’t an investment where we put dollars in hoping to get more dollars out later. That’s what our stocks, real estate, and private investments are for.

With Bitcoin, the goal is to exchange our dollars for sound money… so that we always have plenty of economic energy available to us within the new system.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. We cover the ins-and-outs of how to integrate Bitcoin into a comprehensive asset portfolio inside of our Finance for Freedom Masterclass program. You can learn more about it right here.

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The Real Goal of the Bitcoin ETFs

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) just approved 11 Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). So let’s talk Bitcoin this week…

It’s important to note that the SEC ruthlessly rejected every Bitcoin ETF proposal that crossed its desk over the last decade.

No kidding – the Winklevoss brothers submitted the first Bitcoin ETF application back in 2013. Since then, the SEC denied over 20 separate Bitcoin ETF applications.

So we have to ask – why did the SEC suddenly change course? Why did it go from openly hostile towards Bitcoin to approving not one or two… but 11 Bitcoin ETFs?

Simply put, this is a misdirection play.

To understand why, we have to assess how the narrative around Bitcoin has changed over the years… and why.

Bitcoin first came across my desk back in 2012. Someone was talking about this “magic internet money”. At the time one Bitcoin was worth around $8.00.

And I completely dismissed it.

Nobody’s going to trust magic internet money, I thought to myself. I figured the project would die and Bitcoin would go back to zero… so I gave it no more thought.

Bitcoin then popped back up on my radar in 2014. But now one Bitcoin was worth over $800. It had 100x’d in value in dollar terms.

That caught my attention. How did this thing that I dismissed as a fad skyrocket in value?

So I did my homework and learned about how Bitcoin works under the hood… and that’s when I knew it was the real deal. The technical design is brilliant.

I’ve been a big proponent ever since then. And being plugged in, I saw first-hand how the financial media tried to discredit Bitcoin every step of the way.

First they told everybody that it was just for criminals and drug dealers. That narrative held for a while.

But then Bitcoin’s price shot up to nearly $20,000 in 2017. People couldn’t help but get interested in it after that.

So the media started telling everyone that Bitcoin mining consumed an enormous amount of energy. They said that it was entirely wasteful and contributed to “climate change”. They hoped that would keep the Bitcoin stigma going.

Anyone who understood the technical design knew better.

It’s true that Bitcoin mining requires a lot of electricity. The machines used to mine Bitcoin are application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs). They are now capable of computing over 100 trillion calculations per second. In 2017, the top mining machines could handle around 14 trillion calculations every second. The tech has advanced considerably in a short period of time.

Given this level of computational power, I see Bitcoin mining rigs as mini super computers. That’s why they consume so much power.

And guess what?

That energy isn’t wasted. It is used to secure the Bitcoin network and make it hacker-proof.

Bitcoin mining is a competitive operation. Anyone is free to buy a mining rig and start mining. As such, it’s estimated that there are now over one million Bitcoin mining rigs in operation around the world.

Collectively, these machines currently direct 385 exahashes per second (EH/s) worth of computing power towards securing the Bitcoin network. That means the collective computational power is capable of processing 385 quintillion calculations per second.

And here’s the key – every single mining rig is verifying every single Bitcoin transaction that takes place. And they trace every bitcoin or fraction of a bitcoin that moves back to its point of origin.

In other words, the mining process verifies the entire transaction history for every fraction of a bitcoin in circulation.

Then every ten minutes (roughly) every mining machine broadcasts the results of its verification efforts to the entire network… And a majority of the machines must have exact matching records for those transactions to be verified and completed.

This is why Bitcoin cannot be hacked. There’s no single point of failure.

To control the Bitcoin network, one would need to control a majority of all the computational power directed at mining. But there’s no way to know exactly how many mining rigs are running at any given time… and there’s no way to know where those rigs are or who is running them.

That makes Bitcoin the most secure network on the planet… and by a long shot.

So the whole “Bitcoin mining is wasteful” narrative didn’t stick. And the religion of “climate change” is falling apart right before our eyes.

This is why those opposed to Bitcoin and individual sovereignty had to shift gears.

They found that discrediting Bitcoin no longer works… so they are moving to a new plan. That’s what these Bitcoin ETFs are about.

We’ll dive into the details tomorrow.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. I see Bitcoin as the cornerstone of a strategic asset portfolio… but it has the potential to be so much more than that.

Bitcoin also serves as a medium of exchange. That makes it money. And we could indeed run our economies on Bitcoin if we chose to.

My friends at Bitcoin Bay are demonstrating exactly how this can work.

They are educating farmers and small businesses in the Tampa Bay area on Bitcoin. Then they show these companies exactly how to accept Bitcoin as payment for goods and services. This includes training on the accounting and good practices around handling bitcoin payments as well.

Bitcoin Bay has successfully onboarded a wide range of local businesses in Tampa. That’s created a circular economy based on Bitcoin. 

Looking at the business directory, there are ranchers, berry farms, personal trainers, auto mechanics, accountants, roofers, hair stylists, and many others who now accept Bitcoin as payment. That means folks in Tampa can buy goods and services from these companies using Bitcoin – without ever needing to move back into dollars.

This is what the restoration of sound money looks like. You can learn more about what Bitcoin Bay is doing at their site right here.

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Completing the Water Project

Today we’ll look at the last leg of the Uganda Water Project I’ve shared with you this week.

Yesterday we covered Phase Two. And that brings us to Phase Three…

As the project progressed, the contractor noted that, given the chosen well site, it would not be difficult to install a two-way pump and a pipeline system to create several additional access points throughout the village.

Fr. Joseph brought the idea to us, and we agreed that it was a great idea – if it was in budget. The contractor ran his numbers and provided us a quote in Uganda shillings for the equivalent of $4,865 dollars.

Fortunately (for this project), the US dollar strengthened materially against the Uganda shilling from the time we received the initial contract to the time of funding. In other words, our dollars were able to buy more shillings than we originally expected.

Because the contract was quoted in shillings, this effectively reduced the total cost of the project in dollars.

Thus, the additional cost didn’t put us too far over budget. We were able to raise the additional funds, and we wired the $4,865 to Bevar Forex Bureau on December 21st to kick off the third phase of the project.

As for the final phase of construction, here we can see one of the water tanks being positioned on a platform:

And at the bottom of this image we can see a trench. It pipes water from the borehole to the five access points in the village. 

This next image gives us a better feel for it:

That’s the well in the bottom of the image. And we can see the trench running up to one of the access points about 150 meters away at the top of the image.

And the final piece of the puzzle is the solar installation. It will ensure that water can be constantly pumped from the borehole and piped to each access point for storage and collection.

Here’s the solar array being put together:

These images were taken as construction was ongoing. The last several images I’d like to share with you gives us a feel for how the project looks post-construction.

This next one shows the well after the site was cleaned up:

And finally let’s revisit that first platform we observed from the second phase of construction. Here it is with the water tanks installed:

In closing, I’m blown away by the support we received as we took on this project. Here’s what I wrote in my status update to our donors:

You know, if we look out at nature, we can observe many different creatures who clearly serve a specific purpose. For example, earthworms fertilize the soil. Bees pollinate flowers and make honey. Bats help control insect populations.

It’s amazing to think about. But these creatures can only do what they were created to do. They can’t perform any other productive activities.

Then if we look at ourselves – the human race – we have no such limitations. 

We can learn new skills, engage in new tasks… I don’t think it’s a stretch to say we can create at will. If we truly direct our mind and our energy towards something, odds are we’ll find a way to accomplish it.

My friends, we just came together to accomplish something wonderful. 

In partnership with the Kireku-Bugolo Mwera Development Association, we built a robust water collection and distribution system in a rural village half-way across the world. We brought clean water to a place where people previously had to walk a mile or more each day to get it. There was a clear need.

Of course that begs the question – if there was such a clear need, why didn’t someone install a similar water distribution system in the village before now?

And the answer is because we were the only ones who were willing to take the time and pool our resources together to do so. I think that’s something to be quite proud of.

So thank you once again. It’s an honor and privilege to be associated with such generous people.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. You can follow our non-profit at https://f4hc.org/. Next week we’ll get back on the finance beat…

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The Water Project – Phase Two

We’re taking a break from money and finance this week to talk about a little non-profit venture.

Yesterday we looked at Phase One of the Uganda Water Project. Today let’s cover Phase Two.

With the borehole drilled and the manual pump/spigot installed, Phase One of the project was completed in October 2023. 

We wired $12,000 to Bevar Forex Bureau on December 1, 2023 to begin Phase Two. It consisted of constructing platforms and installing water tanks for storage and additional access.

This image gives us a great feel for what it looks like as you approach the site:

As you drive or walk down this road, you’ll come to one of the well’s primary access points. Here’s a shot from the second phase of construction:

This is the water tank’s support structure. It features concrete footings at the base molded in wooden forms. They are what provide a stable base for the steel framework rising above. 

The framework distributes the load evenly to create a stable foundation. That’s necessary to handle the weight of a water tank on top of the platform.

And here’s a shot of the completed platform:

We can see the well’s support structure in the back right of this image. 

The black items to the left are the water tanks before they were installed on top of the platform. And the building we see in the background is one of the blocks of the Primary School at Mwera.

From here the team did similar work to prepare two other access points for water tank installation to complete Phase Two of the project.

Tomorrow we’ll walk through Phase Three – which consisted of trenching, piping, and a fantastic extension to our original plan.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. If you would like to learn more about our non-profit, the modestly named Foundation for Human Civilization, you can find its site right here: https://f4hc.org/ 

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Our Venture into Africa

As I mentioned yesterday, our non-profit foundation just financed a water collection and distribution system in Uganda. What follows is part one of the project’s status update…

Friends,

I’m writing today to provide you with an update on the Uganda Water Project. But first let me express my deepest thanks for your generous support. 

Our mission with Foundation for Human Civilization is to create a future that consists of vibrant self-sustaining local communities. And every contribution makes a real difference in the lives of the people we seek to serve.

With that in mind, your support enabled us to completely fund the Uganda Water Project. And we were even able to finance a wonderful extension to the project that wasn’t in our initial budget. More on that in just a few minutes.

As for the logistics… 

We funded the project in three phases. We felt this was important to ensure that the work was completed in full and that our team on the ground had ample opportunity to inspect and verify everything. 

We partnered with the Kireku-Bugolo Mwera Development Association on the project. Fr. Joseph Ssessaazi served as the local project coordinator for the association.

Fr. Joseph was responsible for securing bids and then meeting with the engineers to identify the ideal place to drill the well. From there he oversaw the construction and reported back to us with updates throughout each phase of the project.

The association was also responsible for securing the best possible foreign exchange rate to convert our US dollars into Uganda shillings. For this, they partnered with the Bevar Forex Bureau in Kampala. That’s the capital of Uganda.

We wired dollars to Bevar Forex for each of the three funding stages. They converted those dollars to Uganda shillings at the agreed-upon exchange rate. Then they transferred the shillings to the Kireku-Bugolo Mwera Development Association’s bank account. 

Fr. Joseph advised us that they were quite pleased with the exchange rate and how smooth the money transfer process went.

As for the project itself…

The first phase began in early October of 2023. We wired $15,000 to the Bevar Forex Bureau to begin construction. Here’s a snapshot of the heavy equipment arriving at the site:

And here’s the scene as the team prepared the site for drilling:

In this photo we can see Fr. Joseph (left) talking with the lead contractor Ssonko James (right) as the team gets set to drill. 

James runs a company called Ssonkos Consult-SMC. They have drilled wells in other parts of Uganda… and the team’s expertise was evident. 

Ssonkos Consult also does construction and renovation projects. They build and maintain roads throughout Uganda. They supply and install culverts to ensure heavy rainfall doesn’t wash out the roads. The team also does landscaping and surveying work throughout Uganda as well.

Here’s a list of some of the organizations Ssonkos Consult has done work for:

Amiina Ministries UgBest Queen Mother Primary School FortportalCanan Junior School Matendo LuweroKitongo TownMwera Health CenterNawanjiri CommunityPartner for Community TransformationTrue Impact Ministries

Now they can add Foundation for Human Civilization to the list as well. Here’s a shot of the team drilling the well: 

With the borehole drilled and the manual pump/spigot installed, Phase One of the project was complete. Tomorrow we’ll look at Phase Two…

-Joe Withrow

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Time, Energy, and Money

Something of an insight came to me recently.

Like a splinter, I don’t know exactly where it came from… and the idea isn’t fully formed in my mind. It’s just kind of there – poking at me.

So if you’ll permit me, I’d like to explore this idea with you today. But what follows may meander quite a bit more than our usual missives.

The insight is this…

We all are blessed with the energy we need to live. That energy affords us time on this Earth. They are gifts – time and energy. We can’t truly explain them.

What we choose to focus our time and energy on is what will define our values and ultimately our lives.

It’s a simple thing. But if we think about it… it’s quite profound.

Just reflecting on my own life, it’s become clear to me that I largely wasted my first 30 years here. That bothers me.

But I also understand that it wasn’t completely my fault. I didn’t know any better. The institutions of this world led me to believe that my purpose was to be a little cog in their wheel.

And you know what, being a cog did help me build a financial foundation for myself and my future family. That’s worth something.

But I didn’t live purposefully. I didn’t have the mindset that I was the “captain of my fate and master of my soul”, as William Ernest Henley once put it.

This is the only reason why I care about money and finance.

Money is just a tool. It allows us to store our economic energy for later use. And if we are purposeful, we can direct that energy towards projects that we deem important.

That’s what I care about. Since I’m blessed with this time and this energy, I feel like I should use them constructively.

This is what prompted me to create the investment membership I sent you so many emails about last week.

We have a battle-hardened system for helping people get their money and their investments right. And we help our members build extra monthly income streams as well. That increases their economic energy… which they can later use for purposes important to them.

This is why free-market capitalism is the only moral economic system. Because it’s the only system that allows people to build economic energy and then freely choose how they will use that energy.

With socialism, it’s the State that chooses how all your economic energy will be used. With crony capitalism (what we have today), the State chooses how a portion of your economic energy will be used.

I got a kick out of Argentina’s new president Javier Milei trying to explain this concept to the control freaks at the World Economic Forum (WEF) last week. And I saw this dynamic at work first-hand with a project our non-profit foundation just completed in Uganda.

Many households throughout Uganda still lack electricity and running water. That’s especially true outside of the capital city of Kampala.

How is that possible in our high-tech world today?

It’s all because overt corruption in Uganda prevents people from creating and storing their economic energy. As such, there’s no incentive for anyone to build out modern infrastructure outside of the capital city. Most people can’t afford to pay for it.

That’s where our non-profit organization came in.

We decided to focus our time and energy on building a water collection and distribution system to serve two remote villages in Uganda. Previously the villagers were walking about a mile to the nearest natural spring twice a day to get water for daily use.

And I’m happy to say that we just financed the final phase of construction right before Christmas.

If I may, I’d like to share with you the project’s full status report this week. Then we’ll get back on the money and finance beat next week.

And if you’re interested in keeping up with what we’re doing on the non-profit side, our organization is called Foundation for Human Civilization. You can find the site and sign up for the email list here: https://f4hc.org/

Fair warning, there’s nothing fancy about our website. We run the non-profit on a volunteer basis and we pay all expenses personally. That way 100% of our donations can go towards the projects we commit to.

More on our first project tomorrow…

-Joe Withrow

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The Blueprint for Financial Freedom

In our email series this past week, I laid out the reasons why:

The Age of Paper Wealth is over…The US dollar is steadily losing market share as the world’s reserve currency…The Fed will NOT pivot this year…Keynesianism is dead…

Today, I’m going to do my best to lay out exactly how to benefit from the new rules of money that are taking form right now.

Look, I know there’s a lot of FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) out there right now.

Everything we’ve discussed this week could be construed as bad. And there are plenty of even worse scenarios we haven’t discussed.

But I sincerely believe that we are creators in this world. That’s what being human is all about. And as creators, it’s our job to create the future we want.

What’s more, the winds of change bring with them the seeds of opportunity. Here’s what I mean…

Our approach to money and finance has been highly mechanized for the last forty years.

They’ve told us to funnel all our savings into managed funds held within retirement accounts. Even if this approach were viable going forward (it’s not)… what’s interesting about it?

In my experience, it’s far more fun – and satisfying – to be a builder. To create a customized financial blueprint… and then work diligently to bring it to life.

I can’t help but think of Innovator Zero and the old alien weavers of 16th century Europe here.

The sands of history have buried his name. But Innovator Zero is the person who invented the automated weaving loom. And in doing so, he changed the course of human history.

Make no mistake about it – that was the start of the Industrial Revolution. Not many people realize this.

The Industrial Revolution did not begin with steam power or railroads. It began with fabric.

The case of Innovator Zero is known to us because his story is recorded in a Venetian book of inventions. It’s dated 1636.

His story took place in the old city of Danzig. It was a busy trading hub on the Baltic Sea. The year was 1586.

Laboring in a dingy workshop, Innovator Zero developed a machine that radically improved the weaving process. It made weaving up to seven times more efficient. And it enabled sizing standards for clothing.

Eager to share his invention with the world, Innovator Zero arranged a meeting with the Danzig Weavers Guild. But to his surprise, the guild had no interest in his machine. Instead, they ordered it destroyed.

As any good inventor would, Innovator Zero refused… and he secretly disseminated his blueprint for the weaving loom far and wide. Then gradually it began to pop up all over Europe.

The weaving loom reduced costs and created sizing standards for clothing. For the first time in history people could wear affordable clothes that actually fit them.

But even more important than that, the invention cracked open the minds of men (and women).

It showed them that human ingenuity could solve challenging problems. And it highlighted how perseverance and grit can drive economic progress forward.

That inspired people. It inspired people to dream… to think… to tinker… to work with purpose…

And then we got the steam engine… mechanized textile mills… and then railroads. Then came electrification… indoor plumbing… and the automobile.

On and on it went as each new invention shaped the modern world we live in.

As it stands today, humanity has largely conquered scarcity. I say that as someone who has studied economics extensively.

Think about it – throughout the developed world today we produce far more food than we consume. The poorest among us have plenty to eat. We throw away more food than we need. Meanwhile, we have plenty of time to engage in leisure activities.

This dynamic – abundant food and leisure time did not exist for most of human history. Because our ancestors spent most of their time and energy dealing with scarcity.

So how can we not look forward with optimism?

The challenges we face are structural. They stem from outdated institutions… institutions that don’t want to relinquish their grip on power.

But human ingenuity can overcome all. And it will.

On the personal finance front, our investment membership is currently distributing the blueprint for financial freedom.

If you’ve kept up with my missives this week, you already know our philosophy. Financial security first. Then financial independence.

To achieve each, you must first understand the monetary system and how the new rules of money are forming. From there, it’s all about bringing the blueprint to life in a strategic way – which we can help you with directly.

The blueprint consists of:

Strategic cash managementRobust reserve assetsWorld-class insurance allocationEnergy renaissance allocationGold remonetization allocationTech moonshots allocationEarly stage allocationInflation hedgesHome resiliencyReal estate cash flowPrivate notes cash flowAlternative investments cash flowMax-funded life insuranceStrategic financingComprehensive tax efficiencyFinancial escape velocityDefinitiveness of purposeGood stewardship

The trick is to put all of these items together in such a way that they build your financial house. And I promise you, that house will be bulletproof if you follow our blueprint.

Now, compare this comprehensive approach to their simplistic 401(k) and IRA advice…

And here’s the kicker – we provide direct support for all our members when it comes to implementing the blueprint.

We don’t throw information at people and say “good luck”. We actually talk to people.

We answer questions – both over Zoom and via email. We do monthly discussion calls. We share insights and experiences in our community area. And we get everybody plugged in to a robust professional network.  

The game of money isn’t played on an island. It’s a team sport.

Our membership provides direct support and access to vetted professionals. We’ll be your team. And we don’t lose…

In other words, our program is a one-stop shop. It’s a one-way ticket to financial freedom.

But our doors are only open until tomorrow at midnight. And due to inflation our current membership rates are the lowest they’ll ever be.

Just click the link below to get all the details on how you can join us:

The Blueprint for Financial Freedom

I’ll talk to you inside.

-Joe Withrow

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Keynesianism is Dead

Perhaps nobody shaped the modern world more than John Maynard Keynes.

Those who have studied economics are surely familiar with his name. But I’d wager most of the population isn’t… which is ironic given that his theories have directly impacted all of us.

John Maynard Keynes was the preeminent British economist of his generation. He lived from 1883 to 1946.

It was his book The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money that made Keynes so influential. But only because government and Academia loved his general premise.

Keynes effectively flipped economics on its head. And he single-handedly undermined the great stride of progress that had flowed from the classical economists of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Central to Keynes’ theory was an idea so preposterous, even my 9-year old could quickly debunk it. He asserted that the government should issue debt and spend more money whenever things were slow in the economy. This is where the modern idea of “stimulus” comes from.

This is what made Keynes so popular with government officials. He gave them a green light to run up debt and launch all kinds of uneconomical spending programs.

To be fair, Keynes did say that government should reduce its spending when the economy was humming. He didn’t advocate the perpetual public debt binge that’s occurred over the last few decades.

But policy-makers conveniently ignored that part of Keynes’ theory. And it’s easy to see why. With intellectual cover to issue debt and later print money, governments became massive monoliths that now command multi-trillion dollar budgets.

This is what created the Age of Paper Wealth. It lasted from 1982 to 2022.

During this time, the Federal Reserve (the Fed) consistently cut interest rates and flooded the financial system with cheap money. This kept borrowing costs abnormally low and sent the stock market soaring for forty years. Because… “stimulus”.

But low rates and cheap money fueled a debt binge of epic proportions.

As I write, the US government is now $34 trillion in debt. And the American private sector has run up its debt burden to nearly $20 trillion.

At the same time, the policy of creating trillions of dollars from nothing year after year has triggered serious consumer price inflation for the first time in decades.

We see this in the form of skyrocketing prices for houses, cars, groceries, and other necessities.

But these items aren’t getting more expensive because they cost more to produce. They are getting more expensive because inflation erodes the value of our dollar.

That is Keynes’ legacy. His ideas almost single-handedly gutted America’s once vibrant middle class.

Fortunately, the Age of Paper Wealth died in 2022… and Keynesianism died with it. The normalization of interest rates that we discussed yesterday guarantee it.

But here’s the key…

It’s Keynesian policy that financialized everything and pushed the stock market higher and higher for forty years – taking everyone’s 401(k) and IRA up with it. But now those retirement accounts are left to fend for themselves.

That’s where our investment membership comes into play.

As I mentioned yesterday, I’ve spent the last several years building out an investment program geared for the financial world we are entering… not the one we are leaving.

From 1982 to 2022, interest rates only went down and stocks only went up. The pillars of traditional retirement planning were based upon this dynamic – with the assumption that it would never change.

But it just changed.

With our program, we account for this with a comprehensive approach. In fact, we don’t advocate “retirement planning” at all.

Instead, we help everyone first achieve “financial security”. And once there, we then help members achieve “financial independence”.

Financial security is about creating a bulletproof asset portfolio. And financial independence is about creating extra income streams. Once your extra income surpasses your expenses, you’re financially independent.

We have a step-by-step approach for both. And we provide personalized support and access to a larger professional network every step of the way.

And we do something that everybody else shies away from. We focus on efficient tax-planning. Think about it this way…

If you have an IRA or 401(k), you’re going to work much harder and longer than you should… and end up with a lot less money for your effort. Why? 

Taxes and simple math.

Say you retire with a cool $1 million in your retirement account. 

You don’t really have $1 million. Because you’ll be taxed at the ordinary income tax rate every time you pull your money out.

Even worse, you’re drawing down your savings… depleting all that capital you worked so hard for. 

This is the WORST possible way to plan and live out your retirement. 

Now, what if told you there is a way to grow your savings and live off it? 

A $1 million nest egg can throw off $70,000 to $80,000 a year after taxes – without the need to sell any assets or draw-down your savings. In fact, you could use this income to build up your savings and increase your legacy.

That’s this vision underlying our investment membership.

And we’re putting plans into practice right now. Our members are bulletproofing their money and growing their income consistently.

So if you’re ready to do money and finance the right way – the way that will work going forward – give the membership a look right here.

But please don’t delay. Our doors are only open until Sunday at midnight. And due to inflation, this will be the lowest price we’ll ever be able to offer.

-Joe Withrow

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Why there will be no big Fed pivot in 2024… (Part 2)

We are living through a period of historic change right now. And if you don’t know where things are heading… your financial plan is in serious jeopardy.

That’s because the rules of money are changing. The conventional wisdom of the last forty years has hit a dead-end.

Because for the first time in its history…

The Fed No Longer Has A Free Hand

It all comes down to the inner workings of the US credit market.

Treasury bonds are the bedrock of the US financial system. The yield paid by Treasury bonds is considered the “risk-free” rate of return.

As such, Treasury bond yields often serves as a benchmark for other fixed income investments. Thus, Treasury bonds influence interest rates across the entire economy.

This is why Treasury bonds are seen as a reliable reserve asset across the world of global finance. In fact, American banks, financial institutions, and insurance companies own roughly $12 trillion worth of US Treasuries right now.

But here’s the thing – the US government is now running annual deficits greater than $1 trillion a year. The only way to finance those deficits is to sell more Treasury bonds.

Treasuries are a simply a loan to the US government. And in return, the government pays bondholders the stated rate of return.

Thus, US Treasuries have to provide a reasonable yield to attract buyers. And financing over $1 trillion a year requires a lot of buyers.

This is a big part of what the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed’s) aggressive rate-hiking campaign in 2022 was about.

The financial media tells us that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell was trying his best to fight off inflation by raising rates. The idea here is that when inflation slows, Powell would cut rates dramatically again.

That’s not going to happen. Here’s why…

Powell is fighting to save the legacy financial system and the US dollar.

By raising rates so aggressively, Powell has made US Treasuries an attractive investment for global capital again. That hasn’t been the case since the 2008 financial crisis – when the Fed cut interest rates to zero.

And there’s a lot of intrigue within this story…

Not only is Powell looking at a challenger to US dollar supremacy in the BRICS bloc as we discussed two days ago…

He also has to fight off a globalist faction inside his own government.

The Western world’s globalist faction is pushing for what it calls the “Great Reset”.

It’s a plot to overthrow the traditional economic order and make globalist institutions the ultimate arbiter of money and credit. The plan requires the commercial banking system to be neutered or eliminated entirely.

So Powell’s Fed is fighting a multi-front war. I find this fascinating.

And here’s why all this matters to you…

The more global capital the Fed can direct into US Treasury bonds, the better it will be able to thwart the globalist plot and deter the BRICS bloc from abandoning the dollar en masse. At least in the near-term.

This is why there will be no true “Fed pivot”.

Sure, Powell may make a few token rate cuts in the years to come. But they will be of the 25 or 50 basis point variety.

He’s not going so slash rates back down to zero… because he can’t.

Powell isn’t trying to “tame” inflation…

He’s trying to save the legacy financial system. And to do that, he has to normalize interest rates and keep the US dollar at the forefront of global finance.

That means the “Fed put” is dead. The Fed won’t be able to backstop the stock market going forward. Simply because it can’t support the Treasury bond market and the stock market at the same time.

And that means the traditional approach to financial planning is going to be seriously lacking going forward. I believe that 401(k) and IRA will become dirty words in the years to come.

The good news is that there is a solution.

I’ve spent the last several years building out an investment membership program geared for the financial world we are entering… not the one we are leaving. This is a program built for the volatile 2020s and beyond.

Here’s my angle…

For the last decade I’ve been immersed in the world of high-end investment research. In that time I helped launch and grow a premium research franchise. We went from just an idea to selling over $100 million in investment research a year.

But as time went on, I began to notice a gap in our industry. The gap seemed small to me at first. But it appeared bigger and bigger the more I focused on it.

That gap is two-fold.

We weren’t able to provide customized research for people. Every suggestion we made had to be suitable for our entire subscriber base. And we weren’t able to offer real-time support or help with implementation either.

In other words, the only thing we could do is provide information. Our customers had to figure everything else out on their own – including whether a given investment recommendation was suitable for their personal situation.

Our investment research membership fills that gap. We do extensive onboarding. We offer free one-on-one calls. And we have a robust community platform for networking and support.

And our approach to finance is fundamentally different.

We don’t advocate “retirement planning”. Instead, we help everyone first achieve “financial security”. And once there, we then help members achieve “financial independence”.

Financial security is about creating a bulletproof asset portfolio. And financial independence is about creating extra income streams. Once your extra income surpasses your expenses, you’re financially independent.

We have a step-by-step approach for both. And we provide personalized support and access to a larger professional network every step of the way.

And I’ll add that this isn’t just an idea anymore. We’ve been running for sixteen months now… and the feedback has been great.

Here’s what some of our members have said about the program:

— “What a fantastic way to increase wealth…” – Brian M.

— “Just one month… I’m earning monthly passive income.” -Nate J.

— “I’ve built up more monthly passive income than I ever thought possible.” – Mike W.

— “Excellent… Easy to understand with no finance background.” –Aron B.

— “Powerful strategy for creating extra monthly income!” -Kenneth M.

— “ I followed the membership call with [The Phoenician League] and I was really

impressed! Your service definitely exceeded my expectations!” -Daniela M.

— “While the core content alone is worth many multiples of what I paid, the connections to the professional network may be worth even more.” -Brady B.

I’m sharing this with you today because we only open our doors to new members periodically throughout the year… and this is one of those times.

We do this because we take the time to onboard each new member personally. I want to make sure that everyone knows exactly how our resources, our investments, and our network can work for their personal situation.

So we can only take on a limited number of new members… which means we can only keep our doors open briefly.

If you would like to learn more about the investment membership – and how it can help you attain financial security and then financial independence – you can get the full picture right here.

But please don’t delay. We’ll have to close our doors again on Sunday at midnight Eastern.

So if you’re ready to get a jump financially on what’s coming this decade, please give us a look right away. We’ve experienced increased overhead costs due to inflation – so I can say with confidence that the current membership rate is the lowest price it will ever be.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. There’s no flat or fluff with our program. We have a 7-part success path that’s tried-and-true. And it comes complete with specific recommendations that you can implement immediately to bulletproof your money and begin generating extra income for yourself.

I’ll add that we do provide a money-back guarantee as well. That’s how confident I am that our program is comprehensive and unique. Click here for all the information.

The post Why there will be no big Fed pivot in 2024… (Part 2) appeared first on Zenconomics.

Why there will be no big “Fed pivot” in 2024… (Part 1)

If you care about protecting your hard-earned money for the rest of the 2020s and beyond…

This may be the most important email you read all year.

In our last few emails, I shared what’s really happening in our financial and monetary systems.

I told you why the US is facing a potential inflation nightmare as the BRICS bloc is slowly decreasing demand for US dollars…

What I didn’t show you is how the “Petrodollar” system is on the verge of a historic change that will radically accelerate these trends. And this change will decrease demand for dollars even faster… putting pressure on dollar-denominated asset prices.

Kissinger’s Legacy Is Coming Unwound

In 1973, Henry Kissinger went to Saudi Arabia to forge an alliance with the House of Saud.

Kissinger promised that the US would supply military-grade weapons and protection for the Saudi government. In return, Saudi Arabia agreed to sell oil exclusively for US dollars.

This agreement created the Petrodollar… and it ensured steady, built-in demand for the US dollar. That’s because it required every nation to pay for oil in dollars.

Here’s the part most people don’t consider…

When the Saudis take dollars for oil, they don’t just stuff that money under the royal mattress. They recycle those dollars back into the US financial markets. That is to say, they buy US stocks and bonds.

So the Petrodollarsystem creates an artificial demand for dollars. And when those dollars flow back into the financial markets, they help push US asset prices higher.

You probably know what I’m going to tell you next…

The Saudis are now openly talking about ending their commitment to the Petrodollar system. In the space of a few months, the Saudis:

1. Restored relations with Iran.

2. Welcomed Syria back into the Arab League.

3. Backed multiple OPEC+ oil production cuts

4. Ended the war in Yemen.

5. Agreed to sell oil in other currencies – most notably the Chinese Yuan.

6. Agreed to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). 

And now Saudi Arabia is also being welcomed as a member of the BRICS economic bloc. That’s effective January 2024.

All these items are against the wishes of those in Washington.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman practically announced the end of the Petrodollar system when he recently said the quiet part out loud, declaring:

“We are no longer interested in pleasing the United States.”

Once the Saudis begin selling large quantities of oil outside the Petrodollar system…

Demand for US dollars is going to contract – dramatically. And that means demand for US financial assets will fall as well.

What happens next is Economics 101.

This is what the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed’s) aggressive rate-hiking campaign in 2022 was really about. The Fed isn’t just fighting inflation. It’s trying to defend the dollar.

Tomorrow, I’ll reveal the final piece to the puzzle – so you know how to protect yourself and even grow your money while the chaos of the 2020s unfolds.

In the meantime, have you heard of The Purple People?

They were an ancient tribe that left a legacy of innovations that we still use today. And they passed down an ancient business and investing secret that still applies to our modern world.

I’ve studied this secret extensively… and I can say with confidence that it works. I’ve used it myself.

If you would like to learn more about this ancient tribe and how to use their secret, just go here.

-Joe Withrow

P.S. Look for a big announcement tomorrow about how to protect yourself and even grow your money as the world rapidly changes in the 2020s and beyond.

The post Why there will be no big “Fed pivot” in 2024…  (Part 1) appeared first on Zenconomics.