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Foreign holders of US Treasuries (TIC data): Japan, UK, China
~$9.3T foreign-held (June 2026)· Concept
Fact, law or dataA rule, statute, definition or measured number.
Foreign governments and investors held about $9.3 trillion of US Treasuries in June 2026, roughly 30% of the market.
See it on the Money & Finance map →How it works
Treasury's TIC (Treasury International Capital) data, reported monthly by banks and custodians, rank holders by country. In June 2026: Japan about $1.12 trillion, the UK about $940 billion (it passed China in 2025), China about $633 billion, then Belgium, Canada, the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg at $430–480 billion each. Belgium, Luxembourg and the Caymans are custody and fund centers holding for others. Central banks and other official holders now own well under half the foreign total, down from about two-thirds in the mid-2010s.
Why it matters
Foreign demand helps hold down US borrowing costs; if it fades, Treasury must sell more to domestic buyers, possibly at higher yields that feed mortgage rates and cap rates.
Facts, rules and data
Treasury's monthly TIC 'Major Foreign Holders' table, published about six weeks after month-end and benchmarked by an annual survey of foreign portfolio holdings.
Debates and risks
Custody data show where bonds are held, not who owns them, so China's, Gulf states' and hedge funds' true holdings are uncertain.
Inside this (1)
Connections (3)
▸Foreign holders of US Treasuries (TIC data): Japan, UK, China own roughly 30% of US Treasury securitiesFact, law or data
The connection
Foreigners held about $9.3 trillion of roughly $30 trillion of marketable Treasuries in June 2026. Their share was about half in 2008 and has fallen because US debt grew faster than foreign demand, while the Fed, money funds, banks and households bought more.
When and why
Japan, the UK and China lead; custody centers such as Belgium, Luxembourg and the Cayman Islands follow.
How we know
Treasury's monthly TIC data and its Monthly Statement of the Public Debt.
Debates and risks
Whether foreign demand keeps pace with heavy US borrowing, and at what yield, is a key question for future interest rates.
▸Japanese government bonds (JGBs) after yield-curve control could shrink Japan's lead among Foreign holders of US Treasuries (TIC data): Japan, UK, ChinaMainstream view
The connection
Japan is the largest foreign holder of US Treasuries, over $1 trillion. Japanese insurers and pension funds compare yields after hedging dollars back to yen, which costs roughly the gap between US and Japanese short-term rates. With 10-year JGBs above 3% in 2026, a hedged Treasury can pay less, so higher JGB yields tempt money home.
When and why
Tokyo's life insurers such as Nippon Life, the giant pension fund GPIF and Japanese banks, as the BOJ raised rates in 2024–26.
How solid is the link?
Treasury TIC monthly holdings data, Japan's Ministry of Finance weekly portfolio-flow figures, and insurers' published investment plans show shifts as yields change.
Debates and risks
How fast Japanese money would actually come home; so far shifts have been gradual, and some analysts think a 'great repatriation' is overstated.
▸Stablecoins as major buyers of Treasury bills now rival some countries among Foreign holders of US Treasuries (TIC data): Japan, UK, ChinaMainstream view
The connection
Stablecoin issuers hold mainly T-bills and repo to back their tokens, and the GENIUS Act of July 2025 requires reserves in such safe assets. Counting bills, repo and money-fund holdings, Tether reported about $140 billion of Treasury exposure in March 2026, which would rank it around 17th in Treasury's country table, near Germany and Saudi Arabia.
When and why
Tether, based in El Salvador, and US-based Circle are the largest; growth sped up after the GENIUS Act passed.
How solid is the link?
Issuers' reserve attestations by accounting firms, compared with Treasury's TIC country table.
Debates and risks
Whether stablecoins grow toward the $2 trillion some officials predict, and whether that drains deposits from banks, is unsettled.