BITCOIN DOESN'T HAVE BANK

RUNS

BUT YOUR
BANK MIGHT

WHAT IS A
BANK RUN?
A bank run happens when too many people try to withdraw
their money from the bank at the same time.

If banks don't have enough money available to match

withdrawals, they can collapse entirely when a bank run
happens.

HOW DO BANK RUNS HAPPEN?

Our banking system is "fractional reserve" which means the
banks don't just keep your money in a vault and wait for you to
spend it or withdraw it.

Instead, your bank takes your money and lends it out or invests
it. This can lock your money up for long periods of time, even
though the bank promises you the ability to withdraw your
money any time.

So what happens if you try to withdraw your money after the

bank has already lent it out or invested it?

It's not a problem if you're the only one trying to withdraw. The
bank will just take someone else's money and give it to you
instead. But what happens when too many people try to
withdraw at the same time?

Lots of people just found out when there was a run on Silicon
Valley Bank in March of 2023.

The bank had invested their customer's money in bonds which

were locked for up to 30 years. Even worse, the value of those
bonds fell recently, so Silicon Valley Bank couldn't just sell the
bonds to get the money of their depositors. They were
insolvent. They didn't have enough money to match the
withdrawals of their depositors.

As more people found out, the problem only got worse. More
withdrawal requests came in, but many weren't processed.
Thousands of businesses realized they wouldn't be able to pay
their employees due to the bank failing.

The FDIC stepped in and agreed to make depositors whole.

Problem solved? Not exactly...

DOES FDIC INSURANCE PROTECT MY

MONEY?
FDIC insurance is designed to protect bank depositors in the
event that a bank fails. Deposits are insured up to $250,000
per depositor. Sounds great, right?

Not exactly. If a bank fails, where does the FDIC get the money
from? They have an insurance fund with 125 billion dollars in it.

That sounds like a lot of money until you compare it to the

amount of deposits they insure: almost 10 trillion or 10,000
billion dollars.
The FDIC even shows on their website that they only have
enough money in their insurance fund to cover a little more
than 1% of deposits.

ARE THERE BANKS THAT DON'T USE

FRACTIONAL RESERVE?
Some banks have tried to be "safe banks" which don't lend out
or invest depositor funds. However, their applications have
been denied by the Federal Reserve, which means they can't
legally operate as banks.

Because they've been blocked from operating, there are no

banks today that don't use fractional reserve.

Fortunately, there is a way to opt out of the fractional reserve

system by being your own bank. No, we're not talking about
stuffing cash under your mattress — that's still vulnerable to
inflation.

We're talking about Bitcoin: a new financial system that allows

you to be your own bank.

WHAT IS
BITCOIN?
Bitcoin is two things: a digital money and a computer network.
You can send Bitcoin (the digital money) directly to other
people using the Bitcoin network (the computer network).

Bitcoin is a radically new way to store and transact value. Unlike

normal financial networks, the Bitcoin network is able to
operate without central authorities or trusted administrators.
That makes Bitcoin the first ever open and borderless money.

Bitcoin is digital money that gives you complete ownership over

your wealth. For the first time in human history everyone can
own an asset that is truly scarce, doesn't require permission to
be used, and can't be confiscated when stored properly.

Bitcoin can be sent anywhere in the world, quickly and cheaply.

It has no need for a 3rd party transmitter, like a bank.

Bitcoin allows anyone to store their wealth safely and securely

without worrying about the government stealing it or inflating
away its value through money printing.

Governments everywhere can print more paper money, but no

one can print more Bitcoin.

You can easily self-custody your Bitcoin to take full control of it,
giving you full access to the power of Bitcoin. If you can
download an app, you can self-custody Bitcoin and store your
wealth without relying on anyone else.

Bitcoin is better money.

CAN BITCOIN PROTECT ME FROM

BANK RUNS?
Yes, Bitcoin is a full reserve system. Bank runs are impossible in
Bitcoin as long as you withdraw your Bitcoin to your own wallet
and don't leave it on an exchange.

If you can download an app, you can self-custody your Bitcoin

and be your own bank!

No more worrying about inflation or bank runs — you are in

control of your money.
I HEARD BITCOIN IS SUPER VOLATILE.
IS THAT SAFE?
In the short term, the value of Bitcoin tends to fluctuate, but the
volatility observed on a day-to-day basis "disappears" in the
long term.

Bitcoin continues to get less and less volatile over time. As

more people use Bitcoin as a long term savings account, the
more its value stabilizes.

Many people choose to store value in Bitcoin for many years as

a safe way to minimize the risk of volatility and protect their
purchasing power over time.

In some countries, such as Venezuela, Sudan, Lebanon, Syria,

Argentina, Turkey, and so many others, the value of the local
currency inflates away so quickly that Bitcoin is seen as the
more stable way to save money.

I CAN'T AFFORD A WHOLE BITCOIN

Just like a dollar is made up of 100 cents, a bitcoin is made up
of 100,000,000 (100 million) sats.
You don’t have to own a whole bitcoin. Most people just own
sats. Sats are fractions of a bitcoin. For example, if 1 whole
bitcoin is $50,000 then $1 buys you 2,000 sats!

HAS BITCOIN EVER BEEN HACKED?

You may have heard about a "Bitcoin hack" in the news. Most
people read these articles and believe the Bitcoin Network has
been hacked when that is not the case.

What's the Bitcoin Network? Well, think of Bitcoin the currency

as a train. The Bitcoin Network is the train tracks.

When you read about a Bitcoin hack in the news, you're

reading about a custodian getting hacked. Custodians are
companies that hold your Bitcoin for you. However, that comes
with a risk: losing your Bitcoin when the company mismanages
it or goes out of business. This happens frequently, which is
why it's a better idea to self-custody your Bitcoin.

The beauty of Bitcoin is that you can self-custody it. This means
you can take full control over your Bitcoin by downloading your
own Bitcoin wallet. This may sound complicated, but it is as
easy as downloading an app.

The Bitcoin Network has never been hacked and is the most
secure computer network in the world. Even if you combined all
the Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google servers, the
Bitcoin Network would still be more powerful and more secure.

DOESN'T BITCOIN USE A LOT OF

ENERGY?
Bitcoin uses energy to secure the network and ensures the
Bitcoin you own can’t be taken from you.

Bitcoin uses a significant amount of energy, and this is a great

thing for many reasons.

— Bitcoin is the most secure computer network in the world.

— Bitcoin helps stabilize the Texas energy grid with bitcoin
mining.
— Bitcoin reduces emissions from oil drilling.
— Bitcoin still uses less energy than Americans use for
Christmas Lights each year.

You can read about these amazing ways Bitcoin is improving

the world on our main website at bitcoin.rocks

GET STARTED
WITH BITCOIN
Learn more about Bitcoin
WEBSITE Bitcoin.rocks

Get your first Bitcoin Wallet

GUIDE Bitcoin.rocks
Start Saving in Bitcoin Today
WEBSITE River.com

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