I am curious what you think the business model is for such a bank. How do they pay rent? Employees? Utilities?

Fees. Charge fees for services. Obviously the big one would be for custody of your assets. No more free checking or ATM withdrawals. But, they could still offer credit cards and other services. They just wouldn't be able to mix their money with their customers.

And couldn't you accomplish the same thing just by having a stack of dollar bills in your basement, or gold bars in a safe deposit vault (for which you pay a quarterly fee)? Why do you need to have a bank with a basement full of dollars when you can do that yourself?

I want every service that the bank provides other than them lending my money out. I can't write a check or rent a car without a credit card.

The govt looks to have forced other banks to bail out First Republic after they couldn't raise capital or sell themselves. If that policy expands, then no bank is safe. I'd have liked to be on the phone when the administration told WEB that they were going to lend money from his banks to other failing banks instead of shutting them down.

Berkshire Hathaway FAQ

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