Bank Note

In September 2001, as I was beginning my second year of university, I closed my accounts with the First National Bank of Albion and opened new ones with a major multinational in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska. In those early days of online banking, when cheques were still physical and deposited in person, it made more sense to locate my affairs just blocks from my apartment rather than hours down the road.

It was an in-person transaction that took me to the branch one afternoon weeks later, as I made my way to cross-country practice. I filled out the deposit slip for a cheque of some modest amount, queued for a teller, and accepted the receipt with my balance. It was all routine until I noticed something as I headed toward the door: I had over $10 million in savings.

I did well as an undergraduate, with scholarships that covered my tuition and books and living expenses. But I didn’t do that well. I returned to the teller to flag the obvious: there had...