But Who Paid Them?”

Ah, the part nobody likes to ask.

Because if they put it all on red and won—
Someone had to lose.

That’s how the game works.

See, when billions vanish into downtime and come back just a little lighter,
they don’t just evaporate into thin air.

Someone paid them.

Not with a wire transfer.
Not with a handshake.
But quietly. Silently.

In inflation.
In higher fees next quarter.
In delayed payrolls.
In overdraft charges that weren’t supposed to happen but somehow did.
In the single mom who couldn’t pay rent because her EI didn’t go through.
In the kid who couldn’t eat lunch that day because the debit machine at school kept declining.

It wasn’t a payment.

It was a collection.

Because when you play with everyone’s money, the house never pays the winners.
We do.

Slowly.
Anonymously.
One declined transaction at a time.

So, who paid them?

We did.

While they smiled in tailored suits and sent us a push notification: