Inflation is Your Business Partner

Leo Kanell
3 days ago
9 min read

(How to Legally Rob the Bank) 💰

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Let’s have an adult conversation about your savings account.

You probably look at that balance in your business checking account and see a safety net. You see "prudence." You see the result of all those late nights and skipped weekends. But I’m going to tell you what I see:

I see a crime scene. 🚨

While you are patting yourself on the back for being "debt-free" and hoarding cash, your money is being stolen right out from under your nose. It’s called inflation, and it is the silent tax that punishes savers and rewards debtors.

Here is the math school didn't teach you. Between January 2020 and January 2023, the United States experienced a cumulative inflation rate of roughly 15.98%. That means the cash you sat on lost nearly 16% of its buying power in just three years. While you were waiting for a "rainy day," the cost of everything you need to run your business - inventory, ads, labor - reset to a new, higher baseline.

If you held cash, you lost. You took a 16% haircut without ever stepping into a barber shop.

But here is the flip side: If you held debt - specifically fixed-rate debt - the real value of what you owed went down by that same amount. Inflation ate away at your loan, effectively paying part of it off for you. That is why the wealthy love debt and the middle class fears it.

Now, I’m not telling you to run out and get a predatory loan at 35% interest. That’s suicide. I am talking about a specific type of financial arbitrage that savvy operators are using right now to "short the dollar."

We call it The Inflation Heist. And honestly? It’s the only way to win when the game is rigged.

The Motive: Why Saving is for Suckers 📉

To understand why you need to rob the bank (legally, of course), you first need to understand how the government is misleading you about inflation.

You turn on the news, and they tell you inflation is "cooling" to 3%. You look at your P&L, and your costs are up 20%. Why the disconnect? It’s because there are two types of inflation, and the news only talks about the one that doesn't matter to you.

1. CPI (Consumer Price Index): This is the "Milk and Eggs" index. It measures the cost of living for a suburban family. It tracks things like bread and Netflix subscriptions. Sure, that might be 3%.

2. Asset Inflation: This is the "Operator's Index." This measures the price of scarce assets - prime real estate, skilled labor, customer attention (ads), and raw materials.

When the money supply expands, it doesn't flow evenly; it flows into scarce assets. Michael Saylor calls this the "Hurdle Rate." If your business isn't growing faster than the rate of Asset Inflation (which can be 10-20% in sectors like commodities or digital media), you are technically shrinking.

If you keep your retained earnings in a standard business bank account paying 0.5%, and the cost of replacing your inventory is rising at 10%, you are suffering from a Negative Real Yield. You are paying a wealth tax just to exist.

Lazy business owners save cash and get eaten by inflation. Smart business owners use the bank's money to outrun it.

The Weapon: The 0% Business Credit Card 💳

Now that we have established the motive, we need the weapon. In 2025, that weapon is the 0% Introductory APR Business Credit Card.

I can hear the skepticism. "Credit cards? Isn't that how people go broke?"

In the hands of a consumer, yes. A credit card is a chainsaw. If you don't know what you're doing, you will cut your leg off. But in the hands of an Operator, a chainsaw is how you clear the forest to build a city.

You have to understand why these products exist. Banks are not charities. They don't give out 0% money because they like your smile. They do it because the banking industry is a bloodbath of competition. They are desperate to acquire new business customers. They know that statistically, most of you will screw up. You’ll miss a payment or carry a balance past the intro period, and they will slap you with 20%+ interest. That is their business model: betting on your failure.

The "Inflation Heist" is simply taking the other side of that bet.

When you adhere to the terms, you are effectively transferring wealth from the bank’s "Marketing Budget" directly to your "Bottom Line." You are taking their loss leader and turning it into your leverage.

In the current high-interest environment, a standard bank loan might cost you 8% to 11%. That destroys your margins. But these introductory offers give you a window - usually 12 to 18 months - where the cost of capital is exactly zero.

There are generally two types of "Getaway Cars" available in this market:

Type A: The "Total Refinance" Instrument (The Workhorse) 🚜

These cards offer 0% interest on both Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months or more. The "Balance Transfer" feature is critical. It allows you to take existing, high-interest debt - like an equipment loan at 9% - and shift it onto this card.

Usually, there is a fee (around 3%) to move the money, but do the math. Paying a one-time 3% fee to eliminate a 12% annual interest rate is a no-brainer. You instantly stop the bleeding. For new inventory purchases, it acts as a free 12-month loan. You buy the goods now, sell them for a profit, and don't pay the bank a dime until next year.

Type B: The "Negative Cost" Instrument (The Double Dipper) 🍒

This is where it gets really fun. These cards offer the 0% intro rate on purchases, but they also offer unlimited cash back - typically around 1.5% to 2%.

Think about the physics of that transaction. If you borrow $50,000 to buy inventory, and the bank gives you $1,000 cash back (2%) just for swiping the card, and then charges you 0% interest for a year... what is your interest rate?

It’s not zero. It’s negative.

The bank literally paid you to borrow their money. In a world where inflation is eroding the value of the dollar daily, getting paid to hold debt is the financial equivalent of a royal flush. You win on the front end (cash back), the middle (0% interest), and the back end (paying back with inflated, cheaper dollars).

But remember, this weapon has a safety switch. These instruments are not "forever" loans. They are bridges. If you treat them like permanent capital, they will blow up in your face.

The "Stoozing" Strategy: How to Get Paid to Borrow 💸

There is a term for this in the churning underworld: Stoozing. It is named after a guy on a financial forum who figured out that you could use the bank's own rules against them.

Most business owners pay their bills with cash. You get an invoice for inventory, you wire the money. You are a "good boy." You pay immediately.

Stop doing that.

The "Stoozing" strategy involves a simple shift in mechanics:

The Shift: Stop paying for your operational eligible expenses (inventory, ads, software, utilities) with your own cash. Put every single dollar you can onto that 0% APR business card.

The Hoard: Take the cash you would have spent - the money sitting in your checking account doing nothing - and park it in a Business High-Yield Savings Account (HYSA).

The Rate: Right now, in 2025, banks like Varo or AdelFi are paying around 5.00% APY on business savings.

Let’s look at the "Double Dip."

Say you have $50,000 in operating expenses over the next few months.

You put that $50,000 on the card at 0% interest.
You keep your $50,000 cash in the savings account earning 5% interest.

At the end of the year, that cash has generated $2,500 in free money.

You didn't sell more product. You didn't fire anyone. You just moved money from a "dead" pile to a "live" pile. You used the bank's balance sheet to float your business, while your own balance sheet grew fat on interest. This turns your credit card from a liability into an income-generating asset.

It is financial judo. You are using the weight of the opponent (the bank's massive lending capacity) to flip them over.

The Loot: What to Buy (And What NOT to Buy) 📦

Here is the "Safety Valve" of the operation. Do not be an idiot.

If you take out a 0% credit line and use it to buy a new office chair, a company retreat to Cabo, or a depreciating truck to "look cool," you are digging a grave. You are burning cash that you have to pay back later.

This strategy is exclusively for Productive Debt.

Productive Debt is money you borrow to buy an asset that either flips for a profit immediately or hedges against a guaranteed price hike. If the asset doesn't make money or save money, don't buy it with debt.

Here is what smart Operators are buying with 0% money right now:

1. Digital Real Estate (Ad Spend) 📣

In the online world, "inventory" is customer attention, and it is getting more expensive every day. Data shows that the cost to acquire a customer (CAC) in e-commerce rose approximately 40% between 2023 and 2025.

The Play: If you know you are going to spend $100,000 on ads to hit your revenue targets, and you know ad costs are rising, waiting is expensive.

The Math: By using a 0% credit line to front-load your acquisition campaigns, you acquire customers at today’s price (say $100) instead of next year’s price ($140). You are effectively buying your future revenue stream at a massive discount.

2. Inventory Arbitrage (The Cocoa Lesson) 🍫

Commodities are volatile, and in this economy, volatility usually means "up." In 2024, cocoa prices skyrocketed to over $12,000 per ton. The bakeries and chocolatiers who waited for "better prices" got slaughtered.

The Play: Smart operators used credit lines to stockpile non-perishable ingredients before the spike hit.

The Math: By locking in the lower price with 0% debt, they avoided a massive increase in their Cost of Goods Sold (COGS). The bank ate the inflation; the business kept the margin.

3. The Tariff Trade 🏗️

With new trade policies and tariffs on the horizon for 2025, materials like steel, lumber, and imported electronics are facing upward price pressure.

The Play: Contractors and manufacturers are "pre-buying" materials for upcoming jobs.

The Math: If a new tariff pushes steel prices up 25% next month, borrowing at 0% to buy it today isn't just "funding" - it is an instant 25% return on investment.

In every one of these cases, the debt is an asset. It allows you to freeze time and lock in lower prices, while your competitors are forced to pay market rate.

The Getaway: Avoiding the Traps 🏃‍♂️💨

This isn't free money; it’s a tactical maneuver. And like any heist, if you don't have an escape plan, you get caught.

Banks are betting on your disorganization. They know that life gets busy. They know you’ll forget which card expires when. And the second you slip up, the trap snaps shut.

Here are the two "Booby Traps" you must avoid to get away clean:

1. The Reversion Cliff 📉

The "0% APR" is a Cinderella offer. When the clock strikes midnight (after 12 or 18 billing cycles), the carriage turns back into a pumpkin - and that pumpkin charges 17% to 29% interest.

If you are still holding a balance on day 366, all your clever arbitrage gets wiped out by a single month of interest charges. The bank wins, and you look like an amateur.

The Fix: You must treat that High-Yield Savings Account (where you stashed your cash) as a "Sinking Fund." That money does not exist. You cannot use it for payroll or rent. It is "Restricted Cash" that exists solely to extinguish the debt before the promo period ends. Set a calendar reminder for 30 days before the offer expires, and pay it off in full.

2. The Utilization Trap ⚠️

This catches even smart founders. Credit utilization (how much debt you have vs. your limit) is a major factor in your credit score. If you max out a $50,000 card, your utilization hits 100%, and your score can drop like a stone.

But here is the secret: Most business credit cards do not report to your personal credit report. They sit on a separate commercial credit file (like Dun & Bradstreet). You can max them out, and your personal FICO score won't budge.

However, there are exceptions. Some cards (like certain Capital One or Discover business cards, or using a personal card for business) will report to your personal file. If you max those out, you might find yourself unable to refinance your home because your personal score tanked 100 points overnight.

The Fix: Stick to true business cards that keep your personal and professional lives separate. Banks like U.S. Bank, Chase, and Amex (for business products) generally do not report to personal bureaus unless you default. Keep your personal record clean; let the business carry the weight.

The Verdict: Choose Your Player 🎮

At the end of the day, you have two choices.

You can be the "Responsible Saver." You can brag that you have zero debt. You can sleep soundly knowing you owe nobody nothing. But you will wake up every morning in a world where your cash buys less than it did the day before. You will watch your margins shrink as inflation eats your lunch, and you will watch your competitors - who aren't afraid of leverage - outspend you on ads and inventory. You will be "safe," but you will be slowly bleeding out.

Or, you can be the "Operator."

The Operator treats inflation not as a disaster, but as a business partner. The Operator understands that in a fiat currency system, the borrower is the winner and the saver is the loser. They use the bank's money to expand their footprint, they earn interest on their own cash, and they legally rob the system of a few percentage points every single year.

The economy doesn't care about your feelings or your "prudence." It only cares about math.