$134B Suitcase Could Be Huge Smuggling Scam

US debt office tells conspiracy theorists to calm down

(NEWSER) - Conspiracy theorists, take note: The US bonds seized near the Swiss border with a face value of $134 billion "are clearly fakes," a Washington spokesman tells Bloomberg. Most securities are now issued electronically, only about $105 billion in bonds have yet to be surrendered, and the "Kennedy bonds" found on the two detained Japanese businessmen don't even exist. Had the bonds been genuine, the men would have been the fourth-largest holders of US debt. More»

US, Italian authorities blame organized crime for huge counterfeiting

(NEWSER) - The counterfeit bonds with a face value of $134 billion seized near the Swiss border are probably the work of the Mafia, say Italian and American secret services. The mystery surrounding the suitcase stuffed with fake US Treasury bonds deepened yesterday, after a blog revealed that police had released the two smugglers. They were carrying Japanese passports but may not actually be citizens. "We don't know where they are now," an official in Tokyo told the Financial Times. More»

(NEWSER) - Two Japanese citizens were detained last week after allegedly trying to take $134 billion in undeclared US bonds from Italy to Switzerland, Bloomberg reports. Both countries are investigating the incident. “Italian authorities are in the midst of the investigation, and haven’t yet confirmed the details, including whether they are Japanese citizens or not,” a Japanese official says. More»

Willing to take nothing for their money

(NEWSER) - The results of yesterday’s short-term bond auction were staggering. Investors snapped up $30 billion worth of Treasuries at a 0% yield—essentially lending the government money for free, the New York Times reports. Earlier, some investors even accepted a negative yield to park their cash in three-month Treasury bills. “The last time this happened was the Great Depression,” one analyst said. More»

Economy's dive prompts central bank to get more creative with financing programs

(NEWSER) - The Federal Reserve’s balance sheet has more than doubled to $2 trillion since August as it’s financed new programs and bailed out ailing businesses, prompting the central bank to weigh issuing its own debt for the first time, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Fed, looking for new tools to address the crisis, already has begun talks with Congress. More»