KYC / AML is the bane of our existences. My wife and I have been moving quite a lot over countries: just because we work remote and, wrongly, believed we were free.

But we've been tagged (or are systematically tagged) as "suspicious" and it's a constant headache to settle in a new country and open new bank accounts there.

They literally ask questions like: "And why did you live there? And why did you then live there? And why did you sent two times 300 EUR to these two people?" (because they're my wife's brothers-in-law, fucktard: we're talking about 600 EUR!).

And the thing is: once they start asking questions, they basically already have decided that it's a no. And they'll keep asking questions until you give up or until they give you the finger. I just sent a 49 pages (49 pages: that's not "nearly a book" but it's sizeable) document answering oh-so-many questions. Mega intrusive.

"And why haven't you used your bank card during that month?"

Questions like that. Insanity.

It's so complicated that we decided that this time we'll try to stay long enough in one place, letting time for things to "cool down". Which is insane: we're supposed to be free, but we obviously aren't.

We even had a desperate banker (at HSBC) tell us, literally: "Look, now it's going to be horrible: I'll have to act as a robot and ask you lots of intrusive questions but I'm forced to. I have to, I have no choice. I must fill this if you want to have a chance to have your account opened. My job used to not be like this, but how it is and I'm sorry about it". He was obviously not happy about the totalitarian turn society was taking and his job was taking.

It's now the third time, over three countries, that the bank first tell us: "All is cool" to then have the "committee" (due to KYC/AML) reject us. And the bankers don't understand. I tell them: "Look, it's easy: you believe you live in a free society, but you don't, you live in a totalitarian state. No harm feelings, I know it's not your fault.".

And moving targets: "We'll accept you but we don't want you to keep shares of that company in that other country to your name" / "OK, fine, we'll sell them" / "Oh, if you sell them, we still don't want you to bill that company". Fuckers. (and, no, we don't work in porn or anything like that).

And we do nothing wrong. We suspect they also think they're snitching us and denouncing us to the various IRSes: they can. We do nothing wrong. Just wasted taxpayers dollars if the IRSes look into our cases.

And waste is the name of the game: worldwide KYC/AML budget estimated at $180bn while it apparently allows to seize... Drumroll... $15bn. 12x less than it costs. All the while having employees (the KYC/AML team) working against the interest of the bank.

All these KYC/AML people are the worst of the worst type of persons on this planet: those who "just comply" ("we're just doing our jobs, not our faut, it's the rules"). They let the bad guys through the net but make life super hard for the little guys.

Just fuck the people who came up with these rules and fuck those who enforce them. I've got no respect for these people.

*EDIT*: ah yup I remember a funny one... In one case my wife's address got changed to "island of Jersey": we know it because despite the bogus country, the (snail mail) letter still reached us. I'm 99% sure this "island of Jersey" country code from the bank was a special code meaning: "flagged account". I may be wrong but this is really suspicious (not to mention stupid: because there's then a high-chance we legitimately won't get our snail mail letters).