France’s central bank has successfully divested its final gold reserves held at the United States Federal Reserve, replacing them with higher-quality bullion in Paris. This strategic move, undertaken between July 2025 and January 2026, resulted in a substantial capital gain of €12.8 billion for the Banque de France. The decision to sell older, non-standard gold and purchase new bars meeting modern international standards on the European market was driven by market accessibility rather than political considerations. This upgrade solidifies France’s position with its entire gold reserve, approximately 2,437 tonnes, now held domestically.
President Lee Jae Myung has directed his office and the Cabinet to exclude multiple homeowners and those with expensive, unoccupied properties from the formulation and approval of real estate policies. This measure is part of a broader effort to curb housing speculation and ensure fairness in the property market. Lee emphasized that escaping the “real estate republic” is a critical goal for national transformation, signaling a zero-tolerance approach to any flaws in housing policies. The administration is also reinstating heavy capital gains taxes in May to further discourage speculative investment.
Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) has introduced the ROBINHOOD Act, a bill targeting the ultra-wealthy’s use of borrowing schemes to avoid paying taxes on capital gains. The legislation proposes a 20% excise tax on loans and lines of credit secured by capital assets for high-income earners. This initiative aims to generate at least $276 billion over ten years by making the wealthiest individuals contribute their fair share, with potential revenues earmarked for investments in universal pre-K and childcare programs. The act seeks to address the current tax code’s shortcomings, where the ultra-wealthy are able to avoid taxes while accessing massive sums of money.
Two primary strategies, “buy-borrow-die” and “buy-hold for decades-sell,” allow the wealthy to avoid paying taxes on investment gains, either entirely or at drastically reduced rates. The “buy-borrow-die” strategy utilizes loans against appreciated assets to avoid income tax until death, while “buy-hold for decades-sell” minimizes the effective tax rate on long-term investments through decades of untaxed compounding. While arguments exist that the wealthy lack the means to pay taxes before selling assets, this is demonstrably false; solutions such as deferring tax payments until sale, with appropriate adjustments for compounding, are readily available. The persistence of these loopholes ultimately stems from political inaction rather than genuine financial constraints.
Rishi Sunak, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, has recently come under scrutiny for paying an effective tax rate of 23% on his £2.2 million income last year. Many have expressed their opinions on this matter, with some arguing that it is a fair rate, while others believe it is too low for someone in his position. As an American, I find it interesting to compare the tax rates of politicians in different countries.
In the United States, politicians often pay significantly lower tax rates than the average citizen. It is not uncommon for wealthy individuals to take advantage of various loopholes and deductions to minimize their tax burden.… Continue reading
The median is lower than the average because the top earners earn more than a normal distribution.
What’s even more fun is that billionaires and top “earning” millionaires won’t even be on this list because they record $0 income. The average would be even higher with total earnings.
They make their money (or just support their life style) from moving around assets and selling assets which is not taxable income, it’s “capital gains”. And a lot of times shell companies are used to avoid taxable events. It’s all a big “legit” scam.… Continue reading
John Q. Hosedrinker 
Matt Underwood