Everyone does what they can. There have been many incidencts when Muggle governments expropriated privately owned gold (or other riches). They wouldn’t do it to themselves, of course, so the central bank vaults remained safe.
But the point is, only the arbiters of ultimate power (or their clients) can be truly rich; if anyone else is richer than they are, they will tend to take the riches by force. In the HP-verse, wizards have the ultimate power.
Except wizards don’t view themselves as the “arbiters of ultimate power” over the Muggles. Statute of Secrecy.
Now Voldemort, I admit, would probably have done something like this once he took power. Or Grindelwald. But neither of them won, so… manifestly, no wizard has successfully seized power to rule over the Muggles (except maybe waay back and it got covered up) because the SoS is still a thing.
Everyone does what they can. There have been many incidencts when Muggle governments expropriated privately owned gold (or other riches). They wouldn’t do it to themselves, of course, so the central bank vaults remained safe.
But the point is, only the arbiters of ultimate power (or their clients) can be truly rich; if anyone else is richer than they are, they will tend to take the riches by force. In the HP-verse, wizards have the ultimate power.
Except wizards don’t view themselves as the “arbiters of ultimate power” over the Muggles. Statute of Secrecy.
Now Voldemort, I admit, would probably have done something like this once he took power. Or Grindelwald. But neither of them won, so… manifestly, no wizard has successfully seized power to rule over the Muggles (except maybe waay back and it got covered up) because the SoS is still a thing.