Should you invest in T-bills?
T-bills may be a good investment depending on your situation and goals. T-bills can play a role in a diversified portfolio as a safe place to park cash that provides some returns while preserving liquidity and principal. However, they generally provide low returns compared to other fixed income products.
While interest rates and inflation can affect Treasury bill rates, they're generally considered a lower-risk (but lower-reward) investment than other debt securities. Treasury bills are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
The biggest downside of investing in T-bills is that you're going to get a lower rate of return compared to other investments, such as certificates of deposit, money market funds, corporate bonds or stocks. If you're looking to make some serious gains in your portfolio, T-bills aren't going to cut it.
Taxes: Treasury bills are exempt from state and local taxes but still subject to federal income taxes. That makes them less attractive holdings for taxable accounts. Investors in higher tax brackets might want to consider short-term municipal securities instead.
Why Buffett Loves Treasury Bills. In 2022, Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway held a whopping $126 billion in U.S. Treasury bills. Buffett reportedly prefers T-bills to other options because he never wants to worry about whether or not Berkshire's pile of cash is safely invested.
When the bill matures, you are paid its face value. You can hold a bill until it matures or sell it before it matures.
3 Month Treasury Bill Rate is at 5.24%, compared to 5.24% the previous market day and 4.83% last year. This is higher than the long term average of 4.19%. The 3 Month Treasury Bill Rate is the yield received for investing in a government issued treasury security that has a maturity of 3 months.
Low risk: Treasury bills are backed by the full faith and credit of the government, making them a very low-risk investment option. They also have a very short maturity date, so investors are not exposed to long-term market risks and are able to access their funds after brief periods.
Cons. Lower yield: You'll typically earn less interest on Treasuries compared with other, riskier securities. Tax considerations: If you buy a bond at a discount and either hold it until maturity or sell it at a profit, that capital gain will be subject to federal and state taxes.
Compared with Treasury notes and bills, Treasury bonds usually pay the highest interest rates because investors want more money to put aside for the longer term. For the same reason, their prices, when issued, go up and down more than the others.
Why buy Treasury bills instead of CDs?
Taxes: Treasuries can offer tax benefits that CDs do not.
Treasuries are exempt from state income taxes, whereas CDs are subject to both federal and state income taxes.
If you live in a state with income taxes, and rates are similar for CDs and T-bills, then it makes sense to go with a T-bill. The amount you save on taxes will likely result in a higher payout from a T-bill than a CD. Another benefit of T-bills is their liquidity. You can buy and sell them on a secondary market.
4 Week Treasury Bill Rate is at 5.28%, compared to 5.28% the previous market day and 4.66% last year. This is higher than the long term average of 1.39%. The 4 Week Treasury Bill Rate is the yield received for investing in a US government issued treasury bill that has a maturity of 4 weeks.
The Fitch downgrade occurred at about the same time that the Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates slightly, and no less an investor than Warren Buffett announced that he would still be buying T-bills. Due to their safety and simplicity, T-bills are often treated as the equivalent of cash.
Buffett takes an entirely different approach. Berkshire held more than $360 billion of stocks, $167 billion of cash (mostly Treasury bills), and just $24 billion of bonds at the end of 2023. Nearly all those investments were held at its insurance unit.
3 Year Treasury Rate | 4.33% |
---|---|
30-10 Year Treasury Yield Spread | 0.15% |
5 Year Treasury Rate | 4.15% |
6 Month Treasury Rate | 5.37% |
7 Year Treasury Rate | 4.16% |
You can hold Treasury bills until they mature or sell them before they mature.
A T-Bill ladder is a strategy that involves sequentially purchasing investment-grade T-Bills that mature at different times in the near future. This latter point is where T-Bill ladders differ from the bond ladder strategy, which focuses on purchasing bank certificates of deposits (CDs) or bonds with longer maturities.
One of the most common ways to purchase Treasury bills is through a bank. Banks usually offer an array of T-bill products with varying maturities and yields, allowing you to choose the one that best suits your investment needs.
They are considered among the safest investments since they are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. As such, Treasury Bills are not only an important vehicle for traders and investors to invest for short amounts of time, they are also used as a baseline for other investment returns.
How much is a $1 000 savings bond worth after 30 years?
Face Value | Purchase Amount | 30-Year Value (Purchased May 1990) |
---|---|---|
$50 Bond | $100 | $207.36 |
$100 Bond | $200 | $414.72 |
$500 Bond | $400 | $1,036.80 |
$1,000 Bond | $800 | $2,073.60 |
1 Year Treasury Rate is at 5.00%, compared to 4.95% the previous market day and 4.30% last year.
Right now, the 3-month Treasury bill rate is 5.24% while the 30-year Treasury rate is 3.93%. So, if you're looking for a risk-free way to earn interest on your cash over a short period of time, investing in a T-bill could be a good choice.
Is there a maximum amount I can buy? In a calendar year, one Social Security Number or one Employer Identification Number may buy: up to $10,000 in electronic I bonds, and. up to $5,000 in paper I bonds (with your tax refund)
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Zero default risk | Have an interest rate risk |
State and local income taxes is not imposed on the interest income | Offer lower returns |
Can be bought or sold easily in the secondary market | Leading up to maturity, it does not pay any coupon interest payments |
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