........"Pierre-Antoine Delhommais quipped that he hoped Cantona would hire a lorry to withdraw his own "sacks of cash", as "one imagines he hasn't worked for free for all these years, advertising the merits of Bic razors, Nike shoes, Partouche casinos, Neuf Telecom, Lipton Teas, the Renault Laguna or L'Oréal deodorants."

Says it all really, a sign of the times - Eric Cantona, corporate revolutionary.

french banks forcibly limit the amount you can withdraw from your account at a cash machine, regardless of the balance. Cantona's not apparently explained how we get around this limit...

well said Eric; you can tell the bastards are rattled when they resort to slagging you off for earning a living - only a pity this wasnt a Europe wide initiative, be joyous to watch our (alleged) masters(sic) quake :)

french banks forcibly limit the amount you can withdraw from your account at a cash machine, regardless of the balance. Cantona's not apparently explained how we get around this limit...

Erm, go to the teller, perhaps?

banks don't give a shit.

@french banks forcibly limit the amount you can withdraw from your account at a cash machine, regardless of the balance. Cantona's not apparently explained how we get around this limit...

also love the google ads on the bottom of this article

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I assume that Cantona is just a joke in France itself - at least he must be now if he wasn't already

Good man, Eric

We do need to launch a kung-fu kick in the teeth to the banksters.

Hope to see you at FC United on Wednesday - just follow the seagulls.

I hope this becomes a frequent means of displaying discontent with shoddy fiscal practice. Many may assert that it would be pointless to attempt such an action, yet they do not offer alternative solutions to end the malpractices that occur. However, if such an action is successful, even if only marginally, this will be an excellent model of non-violent protest.

Also, if such a means of protest gains more popularity this could ultimately result the establishment of truly effective pressure groups in terms of the banking industry.

History shows us that many ideas, when first presented, are ridiculed and ignored. But once they are tried and refined they could prove to be quite useful.

Bon chance mes amis!

I've been thinking it might be good to have a few hundred quid under the mattress, just in case.

Now I know when to withdraw it.

I'll withdraw al my funds from the bank as soon as the EU bails out my overdraft.

He has got it dead right - we need some of this in the UK. It is time we took back control of the institutions that are supposed to serve us.

The cash in ATM's is stocked up pretty often but in this case they will probably just delay the restock. I mean, who has ever been to an ATM on a busy shopping day and found the ATM empty? If the tellers run out of cash they will just close those banks for the day or say 'sorry it's run out' when it hasn't really. The banks are not idiots. Nice idea though, I just don't think it would have an effect. I'd like to know what would hurt them. Collective noun for bankers? WUNCH!

I loved him as a player , despite the fact that he played for Man.U .
I love this too .
He simply replied to a question , and others have been inspired to formulate it into a campaign . He is not saying bring down the system , he is saying ' Let us show these innert politicians and complacent bankers , financiers , etc , that we , the people , have it in our hands to undermine their activities if they attempt to sideline us .
We are no longer serfs ; we run the world now , and can 'stop' the world if we so desire .
Cantona ..c'est formidable !

This comment has been removed by a moderator. Replies may also be deleted.

Good on yer Eric.
So its collars up, run, jump, and a flying karate kick to the ATM machine on Tuesday morning.
Think i'll start with Barclays

Can't wait!

"France is bracing for Eric Cantona's bank-run revolution Tuesday:" business as usual - because only fools and horses will following this publicity seeking ball kicker's advice! Are the French really so ignorant?

What next? Soon we'll have Beckham telling us how to best learn foreign languages, and Wayne Rooney telling us about moral values!

So, thank you Monsieur Eric Robespierre Cantona, but the revolution was in 1789!

He's right about protesting achieving pathetic results so why not do something that hurts the very establishments that force people to work harder and longer because they loaned 'their' money to speculators.

Trouble is where do people put the money? What a shame if they are robbed of their life-saving because of his advise. If they put the money in another bank, nothing is gained.

And why shouldn't a footballer turn activist. I though Sarkozy didn't want people to retire until they are 62! Allez Eric Allez...

Mjght have been a ball kicker once - but that doesn't make him a pleb.

Good for him if he uses his influence in the best way he knows how.

If more of us did the same we might be in a better situation than the one at present that finds us in an increasingly deep pile of European crap.

This will work. Banks only carry a small amount 'fractional reserve" of cash. All their supposed wealth is leveraged into existence based on the hope that not everyone wants to see the physical notes at once. THis method has brought govenments to their knees many times before.

Can we not just all don the same coloured scarves in protest at the banks instead? That way we can continue to hand our money over to them, but still make the kind of protest that will surely make them rethink the way they treat their customers. Apparently.

French banks do not give out cash over the counter- The money from a cash machine is limited and the machines will not be filled for sure.
I still like the frnch absurdity oef it all though and a great publicity stunt by Eric

The super rich have been pulling this stunt for years and it is the taxpayers who bail out the banks. Ireland , Greece etc

what Eric is trying to say is that money is merely an illusion but one that has been manipulated at the behest of the illusionists (financial institutions) for far too long - so its time to get the seagulls out or something

I must say I agree ....I think

If I were a criminal I know where I would be on Tuesday ...

'French banks do not give out cash over the counter- The money from a cash machine is limited and the machines will not be filled for sure.
I still like the frnch absurdity oef it all though and a great publicity stunt by Eric'

They certainly do give cash over the counter, you can withdraw your entire balance as long as you go in person.

Banks keep a very small fraction in cash of the total amount that is deposited with them - that is why 'stunts' like this could make them (and apparently have gauging by the comments from banks), but banks will only get into trouble if people withdraw because they are frightened, not because they are pissed off with the bank.

@thierrytt1

re: French banks do not give out cash over the counter- The money from a cash machine is limited and the machines will not be filled for sure.
I still like the frnch absurdity oef it all though and a great publicity stunt by Eric

That is rubbish - of course they do. Certain smaller branch agencies don't, granted, but in general, they do. If they didn't.

Otherwise, how do you think anyone ever gets to lay their hands on more than the 250-euros-per-day cap at the cashpoint, dummy!

I use the counter every month to pull out my rent (when I'm ready, not when direct debit's ready).

people, know that French consumer banks run nothing like British banks -- there's all sorts of caps on lending (the monthly repayments have to be no more than 1/3 of salary after rent + tax), and for most people, a 300/400-euros overdraft is pretty swish.

In short, France is radically less credit-dependent that UK or ireland, which is one of the reason's they've weathered the recent global recession better that most - and while having a nationwide social insurance safety net.

Sure, wages here are lower than back in the UK, but if eveyone pulled them out the bank on Tuesday, it would cause waves. And if it catches on...

French banks do not give cash anymore over the counter. You must draw the mmoney from a machine. Living abroad, I had not visited my bank in Paris for a couple of years and went in last June to withdraw money. I found one employee instead of 10 and when I handed a cheque to get cash, she looked at me as if I had just landed from Mars.

@Thierrytt1
€250/day x 30 = € 7 500/months. How many people earn more ? And why would you pay your rent cash ?

anglais:

"Otherwise, how do you think anyone ever gets to lay their hands on more than the 250-euros-per-day cap at the cashpoint, dummy!"

Thierry is right.

Typically you have to arrange large withdrawals by phone in advance. Many Parisian branches do not have cash facilities apart from the machines outside, and when they do, there's the double-door, only-a-certain-number-of-customers-in-the-branch-at-any-one-time system which would hugely slow down any attempt to drain them of cash.

And when the last customer takes the last €50, they'll just say: "no more cash today folks !"

On another note...

Much as one likes Cantona, he is part of the überrich system he's suggesting we protest against...isn't he ?

And there could be a knock-on effect if people get worried that they won't be able to get hold of any cash - there'll be a run on cash machines the day before - could be interesting.

This idea would be perfect for the Irish. who have just been shafted. The Portuguese the Spanish, the Greeks,in fact everyone could not be any worse off if they coordinated a similar protest. As to "stuffing your mattress " with the folding stuff,being an act of lunacy, & leaving yourself open to having it "stolen" That really begs the question.

Those who say you can't withdraw cash over the counter in a French bank are talking rubbish. Of course you can, I do it all the time. However, in my local bank, if I want more than 700 Euros, I have to tell them in advance.

1) Many posters here attempt to demean Eric's suggestion purely on the basis that he is "one of them" (with loads of boodle) therefore cannot be taken seriously. This is nonsense. History is full of good people that have acted "against their own interests" because they saw the injustice of it.

2) One thing Eric certainly is right about. Protesting within the rules/laws made by the very lawmakers against whom one wishes to protest is a complete waste of time these days. The politicians most probably laugh at protesters before calling up their PR men to smear and discredit the protesters and their cause. Then they laugh some more. There is absolutely no point in protesting if one is not prepared to face the consequences of staging a "real" protest as we often done down here.

Well, I am living in France with my French wife and we have already arranged to remove cash from the bank on the 7th December. Like everyone else, we telephoned the bank and said how much we wanted to remove. And come the 7th we will do so.

It is true to say that it is difficult to remove large sums from a cash machine, For many, including myself, the weekly limit for withdrawals from a hole in the wall is €500. Not much but then at least it does ensure that you do not act like an idiot removing £250 per day even though it is putting you more and more into the red. Credit dependence is far lower in France than in the UK. And a good thing too.

it's incredible that people are seriously thinking that this action advocates keeping your money at home in biscuit tins and 'under the mattress'

idiots!

NEWSFLASH: banks aren't the only financial institutions that you can keep money in.

have these people heard of the co-op and building societies?

this is a worthwhile and simple action that everyone can participate in and actually give a voice to all those people who are very pissed off about bank bonuses and the poor footing the bill for the bailouts.

if you don't transfer your cash tomorrow, you can do it whenever you like, the sooner the better though, many people have taken eric's advice and already done it.

the yanks might even be in the lead on this at the moment...
http://moveyourmoney.info/

Wasn't it a run on Northern Rock that presaged the banking crisis in this country.

Eric you should stick to acting.

Whatever the faults of the banks, and there are many, exactly how would industry function and therefore your job without the credit they supply.

And as I've said before, nobody forced you to borrow.

Is there a truly ethical retail bank in the UK? I'm sick and tired of hearing the Co-op 'Gurd with furd' ad and it's silly catch phrase.

Can we expect the Co-op bank to tell us they are 'sense with pence' and sound with your pound'?

FCantona's call to arms was "grotesque" and "not serious". inance minister Christine Lagarde said witheringly.

Although it looks neat with two caps, Eric Fcantona would make a run on

your

bank if he knew you mistyped his name.

Moreover, Inance minister starts with a cap of course, Christine Lagarde would point out witheringly.

Wouldn't surprise me if the French government's advice would lead to
a new 'Castle Mortan'.

LOL

Antoshka
5 December 2010 8:41PM

I assume that Cantona is just a joke in France itself - at least he must be now if he wasn't already

Based on what and who are you?

The irony of Cantona's call to the ATMs is that in France they usually do the protest in massive numbers on the strets, stop the traffic, dump pigshit, burn tyres and straw bales etc. and the Government usually backs down.

It seems that the Brits are just beginning to realise that the Government here can be similarly persuaded if enough people care to protest.

Three days of action by a small but determined number of students and Hey Ho the Government is suddenly offering two years fee free tuition for students from poorer homes.

Cracks appearing all through the LibDems and spreading through the Collusion.

I'm betting on a general election in May 2011.

It'll be interesting to see how this pans out. Thieves should have a field day.

Well I will give a try, I will be withdrawing my ATM limit of 250 on 7th Dec 2010, it will make a statement, will NOT affect me and if enough people do it, the powers to be (Bankers cum W******) WILL start to wonder

there are seven degrees of separation between people. All you have to do to break that chain is persuade people that what they do doesn't matter, and then that effort fails. Maybe unlike other mortals, Cantona knows the reach of brand.

I guess most clever people got (most) their money out of the banks in 2008.
There seems to be a slow run on the Irish banks at the moment.

Money guaranteed by a sovereign debt crisis isn't safe, is it?

And as I've said before, nobody forced you to borrow.

Actually, Giveusaclue, people are being forced to spend more money as the cost of living is rising and people's pay isn't and wasn't. Inbuilt obscelence in things like computers (Moore's law applying faster and faster), if we want to or have to keep up, we have to spend more money. Societal pressures are huge, as ever, and when there was the opportunity and the advertising pressure (unsolicited letters from banks, easy credit in the department stores), people borrowed. They might not have acted according to your exacting standards, certainly but that does not mean you can smugly tick them off, then stop there and offer no solutions, does it?

I unfortunately can't take any money out on Tuesday as I have none in the bank so will do the next best thing and spend an extra pound on my weekly food budget thus making my overdraft slightly a bit higher - in support of Mr Cantona and his symbolic stance.