LEADER 00000cam  2200469 i 4500 
001    ocn904801185 
003    OCoLC 
005    20151006052905.0 
008    150302t20152015mau      b    001 0 eng   
010      2015008022 
020    9780674286061|q(hardcover) 
020    0674286065|q(hardcover) 
035    (OCoLC)904801185 
040    DLC|beng|erda|cDLC|dYDX|dBTCTA|dYDXCP|dBDX|dOCLCF|dHLS
       |dGUB|dIWE|dRCJ|dFM0|dOCLCO 
042    pcc 
043    n-us--- 
049    CKEA 
050 00 HG2491|b.B269 2015 
082 00 332.10973|223 
100 1  Baradaran, Mehrsa,|d1978-|eauthor. 
245 10 How the other half banks :|bexclusion, exploitation, and 
       the threat to democracy /|cMehrsa Baradaran. 
264  1 Cambridge, Massachusetts :|bHarvard University Press,
       |c2015. 
264  4 |c©2015 
300    328 pages ;|c25 cm 
336    text|btxt|2rdacontent 
337    unmediated|bn|2rdamedia 
338    volume|bnc|2rdacarrier 
504    Includes bibliographical references (pages 227-313) and 
       index. 
505 0  Governments and banks -- History of the social contract --
       Banks with a soul -- How the other half borrows -- 
       Unbanked and unwanted -- Changing the world without 
       changing the rules -- Postal banking -- A public option in
       banking. 
520    "The United States has two separate banking systems today 
       -- one serving the well-to-do and another exploiting 
       everyone else. How the Other Half Banks contributes to the
       growing conversation on American inequality by 
       highlighting one of its prime causes: unequal credit. 
       Mehrsa Baradaran examines how a significant portion of the
       population, deserted by banks, is forced to wander through
       a Wild West of payday lenders and check-cashing services 
       to cover emergency expenses and pay for necessities -- all
       thanks to deregulation that began in the 1970s and 
       continues decades later. In an age of corporate megabanks 
       with trillions of dollars in assets, it is easy to forget 
       that America's banking system was originally created as a 
       public service. Banks have always relied on credit from 
       the federal government, provided on favorable terms so 
       that they could issue low-interest loans. But as banks 
       grew in size and political influence, they shed their 
       social contract with the American people, demanding to be 
       treated as a private industry free from any public-serving
       responsibility. They abandoned less profitable, low-income
       customers in favor of wealthier clients and high-yield 
       investments. Fringe lenders stepped in to fill the void. 
       This two-tier banking system has become even more unequal 
       since the 2008 financial crisis. Baradaran proposes a 
       solution: reenlisting the U.S. Post Office in its historic
       function of providing bank services. The post office 
       played an important but largely forgotten role in the 
       creation of American democracy, and it could be deployed 
       again to level the field of financial opportunity." -- 
       Book jacket. 
650  0 Banks and banking|xSocial aspects|zUnited States. 
650  0 Financial services industry|zUnited States. 
650  0 Check cashing services|zUnited States. 
650  0 Postal savings banks|zUnited States. 
650  7 Banks and banking|xSocial aspects.|2fast
       |0(OCoLC)fst00826990 
650  7 Check cashing services.|2fast|0(OCoLC)fst00852645 
650  7 Financial services industry.|2fast|0(OCoLC)fst00924738 
650  7 Postal savings banks.|2fast|0(OCoLC)fst01072878 
651  7 United States.|2fast|0(OCoLC)fst01204155 
914    MID.b2444585x 
994    92|bCKE