In emergency situations, the global financial system turns into a prison rather than wings of freedom.
But you will have to endure it following the unspoken rule of the global banking system.
War forces people to look for new sources of income
The war changed the lives of millions of Ukrainians. Many of them followed the usual path of refugees and went abroad. Some Ukrainians are trying to go to Europe to work.1 But some people remained in the country and are trying to improve their lives in war conditions. One of the steps on this path is to search for new sources of income, including remote work abroad.
Remote work for residents of an insecure country with a collapsing economy seems like the right thing to do. Especially considering that Ukraine is a country with a very low cost of living. Any income abroad turns out to be fantastic wealth for Ukrainians. Even before the war, Ukraine was the cheapest country in Europe and the third most affordable country in the world.2
The situation did not change much after the outbreak of hostilities. Even the most expensive city in Ukraine, the capital Kyiv, is only in the middle of the ranking of affordability of life. After the start of Russian aggression, the city rose in the list from 118th to 132nd place.3 In the provinces, life is much cheaper than in the capital. For a family of two, US$200 a month is enough to survive.* This does not include the cost of clothing, utilities, rent and entertainment. But this amount is enough to buy quality food. Minimum required! In the current situation, it is very realistic to earn money remotely for life in Ukraine. The author of these lines decided to try to do this.
How any gardener can make money on the Internet
For beginners, the best online resources are those that fall into the Alt-tech category.4 These are video hosting sites, social networks and other Internet services that are characterised by liberal rules for users. This provides greater opportunities for beginners than the world-famous Internet resources that are “Big Tech”.
For example, on video hosting sites related to Alt-tech, you can get the first money for advertising with about 100 subscribers.* While on the world-famous video hosting site YouTube, video monetarisation is possible only after you attract 1000 subscribers! In social networks related to Alt-tech, even a single subscriber can become a source of income.5 But social networks related to “Big Tech” do not provide such an opportunity. In a word, if you are a beginner without experience and without an advertising budget, you better try your hand at Alt-tech Internet sites.
In rural areas, only nature and agriculture can be a constant and reliable topic for video filming. Using my old Samsung Galaxy 7 mobile phone, bought 8 years ago, I began making videos on this topic.
I make short videos. Almost all my videos are 10 seconds long. This is the standard. Short videos are preferable for beginners for several reasons. There are so many short videos you can make; 5-25 videos per day or 150-325 videos per month! The more videos on the channel, the better! People watch short videos more willingly than long ones. Short videos are easier to make than long ones. If the video is good, then a person watches a 10-second video not once or twice, but 10 or more times! This is because many people cannot appreciate all the details in 10 seconds.
More views, higher channel ratings, more interest from advertisers, which means more advertising revenue. July 11, 2023 I opened a video blog on video hosting Rumble.6 And already on September 1st I received the first money for advertising on my channel. By this time, I had 350 videos on my channel and about 100 subscribers!
The video channel began to generate income a month and a half after its opening. There were no advertising expenses and so on. Only pay the cost of the Internet. All I did was film the rural life and nature around me every day! Agree, this is a good way of additional income for residents of most underdeveloped countries where the rural population dominates! An excellent result of globalisation. Thanks to globalisation, rural residents from poor or unsafe countries can earn income by relying on Internet resources and advertisers in developed countries. But… not everything is so wonderful.
The flaw of the international financial system
The poor people’s dream of financial well-being is shattered by the rules invented by the rich and powerful. The main problem is the difficulty of getting the money you earn. The global banking system is not ready for international business initiatives from residents of poor countries. This is a serious disadvantage of globalisation, which is mainly focused on big business! Ukrainians, as in Soviet times, continue to live behind the iron curtain which has been only partially destroyed. And in some cases, this curtain has even become stronger. Incredible!
The main problem is that the global banking system is not focused on people who want to open a personal bank account outside their country of residence. But it is a bank account in the country where the business is conducted that is the most effective tool for payments. The bank account is easily controlled by the official authorities and allows all types of payments. This is the most important part of the business of self-employed people and freelancers who earn money without establishing a commercial enterprise. The ability to open personal bank accounts is necessary not only for Ukrainians but also for residents of other countries.
Many banks provide online account opening functionality. However, if you want to do this while living in another country, this does not work. In most countries that are attractive for doing business, a foreigner must provide a social security number, tax number, documents confirming legal stay in the country, home address and even a telephone number to open an online account. But this cannot be done by people who live thousands of miles from the country where the bank is located!
For example, in Australia, foreigners can open a bank account only if they can confirm that they will be entering the country legally in the foreseeable future or if they are already in the country.7 And in the USA you need to at least be on the territory of the country. That is, you must have a postal address. You cannot use the business centre address. A US home address is required. Also, to register online, you need an American phone number.8 It is clear that if you are on the territory of Ukraine, you will not be able to fulfil these requirements.
Why can’t a person easily open a bank account in another country while in one country? Obstacles are created by official authorities for good reasons, the fight against terrorism, tax evasion, etc. For example, in the United States, the rules for opening bank accounts for foreigners were complicated after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. To achieve this, the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001 was enacted.9
These are great goals. Such government action should be encouraged. However, it is not all so simple. Foreigners cannot easily become clients of the banking system of almost all countries. But foreigners can carry out financial transactions on the territory of these states using alternative payment systems. For example Pay Pal. It’s even encouraged! That is, the banking system remains inaccessible, but alternative payment systems make it more accessible.
A striking example of this is Ukraine! A couple of weeks after the Russian invasion began, the international payment system Pay Pal began operating in Ukraine!10 This was done as a sign of support for the Ukrainian people. This system continues to work today.11 This gives Ukrainians certain opportunities to do business in the USA and Canada. For example, thanks to this system, people can earn money on the Rumble video hosting site.12
But unfortunately, using Pay Pal you cannot accept Swift payments or use many other online services that allow people to earn money. For example, the Locals5 service only requires connecting a bank account. Residents of about 20 countries can connect a bank account. But all citizens of states that are not included in this list must have accounts in states that included in this list! This makes it necessary to open a bank account abroad.
Banning some financial systems and encouraging other financial systems seems strange when it comes to fighting terrorism or tax evasion. Is not it? However, this is not the only strange thing about international financial rules.
In the third year of the war, at least one million Ukrainian citizens living in the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government found themselves… under international sanctions! And this makes it impossible to use any international payment systems. Although sanctions have not been officially introduced, this actually works.
The American financial regulator OFAC has imposed sanctions on the territory of Ukraine occupied by Russia. However, following the OFAC order, the banks did not specify which territories were occupied. Instead, entire administrative regions were sanctioned. For example, sanctions should apply on the territory of Donetsk region occupied by Russia. But sanctions should not apply on the territory of the Donetsk region controlled by Ukraine. Banks, not wanting to check each payment, block international payments throughout the Donetsk region. This also happens in the territories controlled by Ukraine!
The fines for violating sanctions are too high! It is better for banks to refuse payment than to take risks! The American press began writing about this from the beginning of June, citing the story of an eyewitness.13 The correspondence with OFAC and banks cited in the American press indicates that there is no point in discussing the problem!14 In such a situation, a bank account outside of Ukraine is needed like air. But alas. For the reasons described above, it is impossible to open such a bank account remotely.
What is the result?
Thanks to globalisation, rural residents, even without work experience, can earn money on the Internet. But getting money and growing your business on the Internet is very difficult. In some cases, geopolitics can completely eliminate this possibility! In order to improve this process, legislative changes are needed in countries with developed economies. But can this be?
Australian Rural & Regional News asked American political scientists who represent the country with the most liberal banking rules about this. Here’s how they answered the question:
Could the US government soon make it easier for foreigners to open US bank accounts? We are talking about the possibility of remotely opening accounts without an SSN and ITIN, as well as a home postal address in the USA.
“Although making it easier for foreigners to open US bank accounts might attract limited foreign investment and entrepreneurial class immigration, the larger effect would be to pave the way for significant expansion by criminal enterprises and hostile state players. The US needs to toughen investigatory powers and enforcement efforts of criminal cartels and hostile foreign players, not make it easier for them fund operations in the United States.”
– The founder and president of TABcommunications, inc., Tab Berg.
“My personal opinion of it not being a very good idea for foreigners to be able to open US bank accounts without following proper protocol and I surely don’t believe it’s in our country’s best interest for our government to make this illegal behaviour easier.”
– Co-Founder, Managing Partner i5 Enterprises llc, Mike Iverson.
As we see, the situation most likely will not change. As before, it will be virtually impossible for foreigners to open a bank account in the United States remotely. This means that these rules will remain the same throughout the world.
The only alternative to this is opening a business. But it costs much more than opening a bank account. For example, in the USA, opening an LLC costs from US$150–$4000, depending on the state.15 For people without business experience and money reserves, opening a business abroad does not look attractive. The risks are too great. Too much expense.
As a result, newcomers will either refuse to make money on the Internet or begin to use various alternative payment systems instead of the banking system. These systems are less controlled by the state and do not provide such great opportunities as a bank account.
The state will lose taxpayers, and entrepreneurs will face additional difficulties in doing business. The state budget and entrepreneurs will lose in order to curb terrorism and international crime. In the case of bank accounts for foreigners, a long-standing rule of humanity applies. Namely, they choose the lesser of two evils. This is an unspoken rule of the global financial system.
*Hereinafter the personal experience of the author
References
1. https://arr.news/2023/08/28/how-polish-agriculture-supports-ukrainian-patriotism/
2. https://www.kyivpost.com/post/6868
3. https://en.interfax.com.ua/news/economic/951490.html
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alt-tech
5. https://www.locals.com/
6. https://rumble.com/user/naturefourseasons
7. https://wise.com/au/blog/opening-a-bank-account-in-australia
8. https://www.chase.com/personal/banking/education/basics/us-bank-account-for-non-residents
9. https://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/what_is_the_patriot_act.pdf
10. https://www.epravda.com.ua/rus/news/2022/06/27/688596/
11. https://www.paypal.com/ua/home
