Top 10 Foreign Holders of U.S. Treasury Securities

Data as of June 2026; amounts in USD billions.

The U.S. Treasury’s TIC data rank foreign holders by reported custody location, so financial centers may reflect securities held on behalf of investors from elsewhere.

Notes

• Total foreign holdings of U.S. Treasuries were about $9.299 trillion in June 2026.
• “Countries” here follows the U.S. Treasury TIC table and includes jurisdictions such as the Cayman Islands and Taiwan.

Source: U.S. Treasury TIC data / Reuters summary.

Why Countries May Sell U.S. Treasuries

Countries may sell U.S. Treasuries for financial, currency-management, liquidity, or geopolitical reasons. A sale does not necessarily mean they have lost confidence in the United States; it may simply reflect portfolio rebalancing or a need for dollars.

Main reasons

1. Defending the domestic currency

A central bank may sell Treasuries and convert the proceeds into its own currency to support an exchange rate during capital outflows or a currency crisis. This is especially relevant for emerging markets with dollar-denominated imports or foreign debt.

1. Using reserves during an economic shock

Governments can liquidate Treasuries to pay for essential imports, energy, military expenditures, emergency fiscal programs, or financial-system support. Foreign official holdings are generally maintained as liquid reserve assets for precisely these purposes.

1. Higher domestic investment returns

If domestic interest rates, equities, infrastructure projects, or sovereign bonds become more attractive, an investor may sell some Treasuries and redeploy the money elsewhere.

1. Expectations of higher U.S. interest rates

Treasury prices generally fall when yields rise. A holder expecting further rate increases might sell long-maturity bonds to avoid additional losses, shorten maturities, or move into cash and short-term securities.

1. Concern about U.S. inflation or fiscal policy

Persistent inflation reduces the purchasing power of fixed coupon payments. Large deficits, heavy Treasury issuance, or concern about debt sustainability can also make investors demand higher yields and reduce their Treasury exposure.

1. Diversifying foreign-exchange reserves

Central banks may shift part of their reserves into euros, yen, Swiss francs, gold, IMF assets, or other government bonds. Reserve managers may diversify because of concerns about concentration in dollar assets and exposure to U.S. policy, inflation, and interest-rate risks.

1. Geopolitical or sanctions risk

A government may reduce dollar assets to limit its vulnerability to U.S. sanctions, asset freezes, or restrictions on access to the dollar-based financial system.

1. Changes in trade balances

Countries that run smaller trade surpluses accumulate fewer dollars and therefore have less need to purchase Treasuries. Conversely, a country with a large trade deficit may sell reserves to finance imports.

1. Managing a sovereign wealth fund or pension portfolio

Some reported holders are financial centers rather than purely government reserve accounts. Investment funds, banks, insurers, and corporations may sell Treasuries because of liability payments, portfolio targets, margin calls, or changing risk preferences.

1. Taking profits or rebalancing

A holder may sell simply because Treasuries have appreciated, because its allocation has exceeded a target, or because it wants to match the duration of its assets with future obligations.

How the reasons may differ

The country ranking should therefore be interpreted cautiously: Treasury data identify the reported holder or custody location, not always the government that ultimately owns the securities. Financial centers can appear high in the ranking because they hold assets for investors elsewhere.

What a major sell-off could cause

A gradual reduction would likely have limited impact because Treasuries are a deep, liquid market with many potential buyers. A rapid, simultaneous sale by several large holders could:

• Push Treasury prices down and yields up.
• Increase U.S. government borrowing costs.
• Strengthen or weaken the dollar depending on how sellers use the proceeds.
• Tighten global dollar liquidity.
• Create mark-to-market losses for banks, funds, and other bondholders.
• Potentially increase market volatility.

However, selling Treasuries does not always mean abandoning dollars. A holder might exchange long-term bonds for Treasury bills, dollar deposits, or other dollar-denominated assets. It is also possible for a country’s dollar holdings to rise in value while its Treasury holdings fall, simply because it has shifted from bonds to cash.

Clickable sources

1. Congressional Research Service — Foreign Holdings of Federal Debt
2. Congressional Research Service — Top Foreign Holders of Federal Debt
3. U.S. Treasury — Treasury International Capital Data
4. U.S. Treasury — Treasury Securities
5. Federal Reserve — U.S. Treasury Securities
6. IMF — Currency Composition of Official Foreign Exchange Reserves
7. IMF — International Reserves and Foreign Currency Liquidity
8. Bank for International Settlements — U.S. dollar funding
9. Federal Reserve Bank of New York — Treasury Market
10. U.S. Treasury — Treasury International Capital Reports
11. Federal Reserve — Financial Stability Report
12. ECB — The international role of the euro
13. World Gold Council — Central bank gold statistics
14. U.S. Treasury — Fiscal Data
15. Reuters — Foreign holdings of U.S. Treasuries