Ordering Customized Personal Checks Can Actually Save You Money

As technology
has developed over the last two decades, companies have found that they are able to extend their reach beyond just serving other businesses and can now offer their products to the end user directly. No where is this more evident than in the personal check printing industry. Where in the past these companies mainly just dealt with the banks, today individuals can order checks directly from them via a simple interface on the companies' websites.

It isn't surprising that personalized or custom printed bank checks are very popular. We love to express our individuality in a variety of ways including getting tattoos or putting vanity license plates on our cars. When we have the opportunity to make a personal statement or customize something so that it better reflects who we are, we repeatedly take advantage of it.

Whether you are an animal lover, sports fanatic or a proud university graduate you can find a related personal check design that will share your passion with the rest of the world. Every time you write a check the recipient will learn a little something about you without you having to say a word. The customization options don't just stop at choosing a theme as you can also select your favorite font and other adornments.

What is surprising is that these personalized designer checks are often even cheaper than if we had ordered the run-of-the-mill checks that are offered by our banks. Banks get their checks from nation printers and then mark that price up and pass the cost along to us. When we order online we are able to bypass the middleman, the bank in this case, and order checks less expensively from the printer directly.

Historical Facts About The Gold Standard

Let us start with the definition of gold standard. The Encyclopaedia of Economics and Liberty, an essay on gold standard, defines the gold standard as "a commitment by participating countries to fix the prices of their domestic currencies in terms of a specified amount of gold. National currency and other forms of money like bank deposits and notes were liberally transformed into gold at the permanent price."

The first gold coin in the history has been by the Lydia in 643 B.C. They were made of a crude material naturally occurring, and were a mixture of gold and silver. The Midas touch and the Celts are prominent historical achievements towards the evolution of modern-time gold standard setting. Then the Romans came with gold, silver, bronze and copper coins. After the death of Julius Caesar, gold coinage became very important in the Roman Coinage system.

The first ever one-pound coin was the gold sovereign, which came into existence in the year 1489 under the kingdom ship of King Henry VII. The Pound Sterling has been regarded as a unit of currency for centuries. This coin denomination was circulated with a weight of 240 grains equal to 0.5 troy (15.55 g) and was smelted using the standard gold coinage alloy of about 23 carat (95.83% fine).

It was 1971 when gold was priced as $38 per ounce, and in 1973 as $42 per ounce. As the dollar lost its value, people were stimulated to sell their US dollar hoards in lieu of gold. At last, in late 1973, the U.S. government separated the value of dollar being affected by gold altogether and vice versa. It was then that in the open market, the price of gold soared to the peak of $120 per ounce.

In 1946, system of fixed exchange rates was created by the Bretton Woods System. Through this system, United States treasury was made bound of buying gold from other governments on a fixed price that was $35 per ounce. Nobody could violate this law to buy or sell gold above or at low price than $35 for per ounce. This system came to an end on August 15, 1971.

Britain too was the initial industrialized power and had embraced the gold standard around the 1820s. The United States did not follow the trend till 1873, when the Coinage Act took place. France and Germany then followed the steps of the US after some time.

Doubts Over Greece's Ability To Cope With Spiralling Debt

By the 19th of May, the Greek government is scheduled to repay a 8.4bn euro loan to investors; it comes at a time where the economy is struggling to cope with mounting interest on spiralling loans. Discussions between Greece's finance ministry, the European Commission and the IMF are aiming to find a solution to the problem. Greece is finding it difficult to solve its 300bn euro debt over the next three years. The country aims to arrange a deal for a swift 40bn euro payout from the IMF and Eurozone members.

In a recent statement, Greece's finance ministry said: "The discussions concern a three-year programme of economic policies, which can be supported with financial assistance from eurozone members and the International Monetary Fund should Greek authorities decide to request the activation of the mechanism."

A handful of eurozone members have pledged 30bn Euros with the remaining 10bn from the IMF. The discussions aim to clarify the exact terms, conditions and interest rates if the aid is agreed. However 40bn Euros might not be enough as speculated by many experts. Rumours that a minimum of 80bn Euros would be required to simply avoid defaulting on previous loans were denied by Axel Weber of the European Central Bank Governing Council.

The Greek government has been hit by rising borrowing costs as lenders demand a higher return on providing money to repay existing debts. Athens was able to raise almost 2bn Euros by selling three month treasury bills but although the fund-raising was successful, the interest rate was 3.65%, more than twice the level of loans secured in January.

Before the end of May, Greece will need to raise about 11bn Euros and a further 35bn Euros during 2010 to cover its costs such as public service pensions. Leading economic experts throughout Europe have warned that coming to Greece's aid and subsequently bailing them out with a 'blank cheque' could have damaging effects on the economy of that country.

Will The Gold Bubble Peak In 2010

Gold is one of the most valuable metals, in which people invest their money. It is a safe business against any financial, political, community-based or currency-based crises. From the last few years, it has been proved that gold is the best investment. People spend money to buy gold with the hope that its value will not be lowered down with the passage of time, rather its worth will increase.

However, there is still one element that has not been affected by the state recession in the economy. Rather, it is the only element that has seen rise in its price while all the commodities have faced decline in their value.

Buying gold is one area, where the investors have heavily invested without any fear of loss. The gold price rose to the record limit in the previous few years. It is still expected that in 2010, the gold bubble will go to the peak. There is one important point here, which is important to know that what does the word bubble means; it actually means that the prices of gold will only go up.

There are many uses of gold. It is used in jewellery and ornaments. It is also used in the making of different medical equipments. Gold was used for the purpose of trading as money for many centuries. However, this was replaced by paper money but still this paper money is backed by gold. Countries keep gold reserves to maintain their economic strength.

The past few years have proved that there is no superior investment than gold. People spend in gold with the outlook that it will not be defeated in its worth over time. Its value will rather increase eventually. We have witnessed over the last few years that the value of gold has by and large been on the climb. It is well thought-out to be a more trustworthy investment than stocks as we have witnessed many crashes in the stock marketplace, and the population has lost a lot of money. Hence, even stocks are not secure to invest in.

It is considered to be a more reliable investment than stocks as we have witnessed many crashes in the stock market and people have lost a lot of money. Therefore, even stocks are not safe to invest in.

Second Chance Bank Accounts

If you need to obtain Business Bank Account No Credit Check the best location to acquire the information you need is on the Internet. There are quite a few of resources available on the topic.

Today banking institutions examine the credit histories of people before they will permit them to open an account. If your credit history is bad, second chance bank accounts are an excellent way of starting to repair your credit. With a poor credit history, the majority of banking institutions will refuse your request for an account; however, a second chance bank account may be the solution to your problem.

If a person is listed in a system, such as Telecheck or ChexSystems, which are the equivalent of credit bureaus for banks, he or she will not be permitted to open an account.

You can eschew these systems by starting a second chance bank account. This is a unique type of account which is offered exclusively to individuals with a poor financial history, or individuals who have lost their bank account because of problems with debt.

What do you need to do to obtain a second chance bank account? If you want to open a second chance bank account, search for online bank lenders that provide this service. These will essentially be banks that aren't using a system like Telecheck or CheckSystems, and you can apply online and be approved very quickly.

You can use your second chance bank account just like a normal bank account, once it has been established, and there are a large number of internet banks that will give you a second chance bank account. Still, it's critical that you research the conditions of these accounts so that you are not caught unaware later. Usually, a second chance bank account has additional penalties and limitations that you wouldn't have with a regular account.

Washington Mutual Mortgage - Who Saw It Coming

Life for a business is similar to, life for a person. It's difficult to go through all life has to offer watching the rear view mirror. This being true; it is also true ignoring the past makes the future a series of re-educations. For future home owners; paying on a Washington Mutual Mortgage is like walking barefoot on broken glass. If your get through it; the memory will last forever. Many ask, what could cause a company founded in 1889 to suffer such an unflattering demise?

In the 1980's and 90's a housing boom flourished. Law makers and bearcats in Washington applied pressure on lending institutions to mortgage more homes. Considering, sharing in the American dream of home ownership, the idea and practice was a big hit with the general public. In no time at all, home sales skyrocketed resulting in more mortgages being written and sold. Washington Mutual operated as one of the major players in the subprime mortgage arena.

Throughout this period homes were selling at record pace. Mortgages were being written by both professionals and amateurs. Many of these mortgages were written on people unqualified to purchase homes, and in turn the paper was bought and sold by banking firms like Washington Mutual. (WAMU) Washington Mutual made billions of dollars in sales and grew rapidly however on September 25, 2008 their future collided with the past. As a result Washington Mutual Inc. Came to an end.

On September 26, 2008, JP Morgan Chase acquired Washington Mutual. In a secret and private bidding process, Washington Mutual's strong history of satisfying its customer and usually making sound business decisions came to an un-ceremonial end.

Washington Mutual could hardly be considered a helpless victim. The firm proved itself more than willing and able to be the dog, in "dog, eat dog", corporate warfare. Many corporations and businesses fell victim to the WAMU acquisitions machinery, and was consumed. In the darkness of a Thursday night in 2008, Washington Mutual, Inc. Became food to a bigger dog.