10 years ago, I graduated Uni with no debt and about $1,000 net worth.

My first job (engineer) paid $100k/yr. After taxes & expenses, I saved $70k per year for 3 years.

With $200k net worth, I lived on $5k per year and for the past 7 years, I worked only 30% of the time – just enough to cover my expenses without dipping into my savings.

This year I sold bitcoin (bought for $7,000. sold for $1,000,000). My target to retire-retire was $800,000, so I’ve finally reached my goal.

The sell orders executed so fast that I don’t know where to put it. I already stuffed every US bank that I have to the $250k FDIC max, but my last sell order exceeds that. I’ve applied to open bank accounts with maybe 100 banks in the US, and I’ve only succeeded in opening 1. My requirements:

[1] No monthly fees
[2] No inactivity fees
[3] No phone or phone number required
[4] Online Banking with 2FA support (TOTP, Webauthn, or email)

99% of the banks that I’ve tried to open with auto-deny me. My credit is great. When I call and ask why, they say something about the information I gave them not matching their records. The ones that have an appeal process told me “the system” denied me, and there’s nothing they can do – even supervisors.

My long-term plan is to buy a small condo in a city and a lot of land in the country. But it’ll probably take me 6-24 months to find and finish those deals, and in the meantime I want to keep my money somewhere safe.

I’m also a bit worried about the USD tanking. I’ve looked into banks in Europe and Canada, but Canada requires a tax ID and I only speak English. Can anyone recommend a very stable bank abroad (with English language support) that a US American can open remotely that meets the above requirements?

Where would you put your money if you were in my situation?

  • _edge@discuss.tchncs.de
    3·
    3 days ago

    No foreign bank wants money from us citizens (unless it’s a lot more). Try to understand why US banks don’t want to work with you. Or maybe questions your requirements? No phone (number)?

    • throwaway92937OPEnglish
      2·
      3 days ago

      Do you have an ethical option? One that doesn’t invest in evil corporations?

      • _edge@discuss.tchncs.de
        2·
        3 days ago

        US requires that foreign banks to ‘cooperate’. Yes, AML and tax. This is doable, but costly. Thus, all or most typical B2C products do not allow US persons (or require a special onboarding process). Many banks around the world will work with anyone except from countries sanctioned by law or the US.

    • Dagrothus@reddthat.com
      4·
      4 days ago

      $2 in ramen per day = $60/mo, $15/mo gym membership, $2 for housing (cardboard box), and the rest is spending money $$$ - cnbc, probably

      • throwaway92937OPEnglish
        3·
        3 days ago

        NYC budget:

        • $30/mo unlimited metro pass
        • $13/mo NYC gym membership
        • 50% of food free from trash
        • $100/mo food bought from stores
        • $125/mo rent (lived in car)

        That still left plenty of money for the occasional coffee after the library closed.

        It’s easier to budget with cash. I would put $100 in my wallet every Monday, and that would have to last me until the end of the week.

        And that was a luxurious time in my life. Many people live in NYC for nothing, but it was nice to have a hardshell that I could leave parked instead of a tent. Many months (when I do work-trades) my expenses are maybe $10/mo just to pay for soap and toothpaste

        • xyzzy@lemm.ee
          4·
          3 days ago

          So you were an engineer, but you chose to be homeless, and you worked from the library and showered and used the bathroom at the gym.

          And then you got really lucky with a Bitcoin investment.

          Wow, /u/Dagrothus wasn’t far off.

  • what_was_not_said@lemmy.world
    3·
    4 days ago

    You need an adviser who won’t take you for a ride.

    You’re going to have substantial capital gains taxes this year.

    If it were me, and in a taxable account, I’d put it in a mix of VT and BNDW after making sure I could cover taxes.

    • throwaway92937OPEnglish
      1·
      3 days ago

      How does one find such an advisor? Do you have a trustworthy website that has a list of them, with reviews?

    • throwaway92937OPEnglish
      12·
      4 days ago

      Are there any sites that compare them? I’ve spent the past month just searching for a CPA. Took a long time to find one that has experience with cryptocurrencies and as willing to communicate with e2ee.

      I do think it’s good advice to do an hourly consulting with a financial advisor after I pay my capital gains taxes in a few months…