Strong Eagle wrote:FaeLLe wrote:Even though it is Singapore I would not feel comfortable walking around with almost half a million $ in cash!
While not disagreeing with you, I did see this dude wearing the typical Singaporean wife beater t shirt, shorts, and flip flops, bring about $235,000 in a paper bag into UOB's currency stations, where I was busy converting a couple thousand bucks. I can only guess he was a money changer... and it was interesting to watch all the money being counted.
I tend to agree with FaeLLe, that's a lot of 'bearer wealth' to be carrying around in any country.
If you spend time around Raffles Place you come to recognise the money-changers 'runners', i.e. the guys who carry the cash. They dress anonymously and usually have the funds in shoulder bags, which they might keep one arm over. They don't hurry as such, but they move with a purpose that marks them out from the surrounding crowds.
When one arrives at a money changer they go to the side-door and get quick access to the secure back-room. Even these guys don't hang about, so without their knowledge etc I wouldn't seek to emulate them, except for maybe the shortest journey on foot, maybe a RP money-changer, over the square, into one of the big bank branches?
- I've seen characters that SE's anecdote reminds me of. Tattoos, gold Rolex, a few chains and some jade, emptying bags of cash. My conclusion then was they weren't runners, but perhaps more er... 'proprietors of cash-generative businesses'.
