Title 12Banks and BankingRelease 119-73not60

§2288 Bank Obligations

Title 12 › Chapter 24— FEDERAL FINANCING BANK › § 2288

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Bank can sell debt (bonds or notes) to the public up to $15,000,000,000 at any time, or more if Congress approves. The Bank decides the length and interest rates. The notes can let the Bank pay them off early. The Bank should try to match how it borrows with its assets. The Bank may also sell notes to the Treasury Secretary, who may buy them using money from Treasury security sales as public debt transactions. The Secretary will require at least a minimum return based on similar U.S. Treasury yields and may later resell what he buys. The Bank can require the Secretary to buy enough so his holdings do not exceed $5,000,000,000 at once, though the Secretary may buy more if he chooses. These notes are legal investments and can be used as security or investments for fiduciary, trust, and public funds of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. territories or possessions, and their agencies or officers.

Full Legal Text

Title 12, §2288

Banks and Banking — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Bank is authorized, with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury, to issue publicly and have outstanding at any one time not in excess of $15,000,000,000, or such additional amounts as may be authorized in appropriations Acts, of obligations having such maturities and bearing such rate or rates of interest as may be determined by the Bank. Such obligations may be redeemable at the option of the Bank before maturity in such manner as may be stipulated therein. So far as is feasible, the debt structure of the Bank shall be commensurate with its asset structure.
(b)The Bank is also authorized to issue its obligations to the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of the Treasury may in his discretion purchase or agree to purchase any such obligations, and for such purpose the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to use as a public debt transaction the proceeds of the sale of any securities hereafter issued under chapter 31 of title 31, and the purposes for which securities may be issued under chapter 31 of title 31 are extended to include such purchases. Each purchase of obligations by the Secretary of the Treasury under this subsection shall be upon such terms and conditions as to yield a return at a rate not less than a rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration the current average yield on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States of comparable maturity. The Secretary of the Treasury may sell, upon such terms and conditions and at such price or prices as he shall determine, any of the obligations acquired by him under this subsection. All purchases and sales by the Secretary of the Treasury of such obligations under this subsection shall be treated as public debt transactions of the United States.
(c)The Bank may require the Secretary of the Treasury to purchase obligations of the Bank issued pursuant to subsection (b) in such amounts as will not cause the holding by the Secretary of the Treasury resulting from such required purchases to exceed $5,000,000,000 at any one time. This subsection shall not be construed as limiting the authority of the Secretary to purchase obligations of the Bank in excess of such amount.
(d)Obligations of the Bank issued pursuant to this section shall be lawful investments, and may be accepted as security for all fiduciary, trust, and public funds, the investment or deposit of which shall be under the authority or control of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territory or possession of the United States, or any agency or instrumentality of any of the foregoing, or any officer or officers thereof.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification In subsec. (b), “chapter 31 of title 31” substituted for “the Second Liberty Bond Act” on authority of Pub. L. 97–258, § 4(b), Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1067, the first section of which enacted Title 31, Money and Finance.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

12 U.S.C. § 2288

Title 12Banks and Banking

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60