http://www.sott.net/articles/show/164069-The-Goldsmiths-Part-I

A long read but I found it to be quite interesting.

Crimson.

Yes....modern banking practices were started by goldsmiths who kept peoples gold for them.

It is my opinion that much of the current crisis is caused by going off of the gold standard during Nixons tenure. This enabled the Fed to create fiat money (money created from thin air with nothing backing it up) to their hearts content. It is the infusion of fiat money that devalues the currency via being an engine for inflation.

This is also the time period that the practice of shocking nations and privatizing their resources started gaining a great deal of traction. There are thirty six victims scattered throughout Central America, South America, Africa, and Asia.

It takes a book to explain this practice. 'Confessions of an Economic Hitman' and 'The Shock Doctrine:The Rise of Disaster Capitalism' are both very powerful and excellent reads.