America owes trillions to other nations: Here’s who holds the IOUs

In February 2025, President Donald Trump expressed skepticism regarding the accuracy of the officially reported U.S. national debt figures, hinting at the possibility of inflation through fraudulent activities.

In February 2025, President Donald Trump expressed skepticism regarding the accuracy of the officially reported U.S. national debt figures, hinting at the possibility of inflation through fraudulent activities.

Additionally, he proposed that the United States might consider not repaying portions of its debt to countries that hold U.S. Treasury bonds.

"We're even looking at Treasuries," Trump told reporters on Air Force One on February 9th according to Reuters. “There could be a problem — you've been reading about that, with Treasuries and that could be an interesting problem."

While it’s unlikely the United States government would ever default on its debt to other countries, there are several nations and territories that hold substantial amounts of US and would be seriously affected if Trump’s administration chose to not repay them. 

As of March 2025, the US national debt stood at roughly $36.6 trillion dollars according to Peter G. Peterson Foundation, and while much of the debt is owed to US citizens,  a large portion is also owed to other countries. Let’s look at the biggest debt holders according to data that was collected and listed by Visual Capitalist. 

Germany

Debt owed as of December 2024: $97 billion

 

Photo by Maheshkumar Painam on Unsplash

Mexico

Debt owed as of December 2024: $103 billion

 

Photo by Jorge Aguilar on Unsplash

South Korea

Debt owed as of December 2024: $125 billion

 

Photo by Daniel Bernard on Unsplash

Saudi Arabia

Debt owed as of December 2024: $138 billion

 

Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash

Brazil

Debt owed as of December 2024: $202 billion

 

Photo by Matheus Câmara da Silva on Unsplash

India

Debt owed as of December 2024: $219 billion 

 

Photo by Naveed Ahmed on Unsplash

Singapore

Debt owed as of December 2024: $249 billion 

 

Photo by Rogan Yeoh on Unsplash

Hong Kong

Debt owed as of December 2024: $255 billion

 

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Taiwan

Debt owed as of December 2024: $282 billion

 

Photo by Roméo A. on Unsplash

Switzerland

Debt owed as of December 2024: $289 billion

 

Photo by Vincent Ghilione on Unsplash

France

Debt owed as of December 2024: $332 billion

 

Photo by Anthony Choren on Unsplash

Ireland

Debt owed as of December 2024: $ 336 billion

 

Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash

Belgium

Debt owed as of December 2024: $375 billion

 

Photo by Luiza Giannelli on Unsplash

Canada

Debt owed as of December 2024: $379 billion

 

Photo by Praveen Kumar Nandagiri on Unsplash

Cayman Islands

Debt owed as of December 2024: $419 billion

Luxembourg

Debt owed as of December 2024: $424 billion

 

Photo by Li Jia on Unsplash

The United Kingdom

Debt owed as of December 2024: $723 billion

 

Photo by Mike Benna on Unsplash

China

Debt owed as of December 2024: $759 billion

 

Photo by Ricardo on Unsplash

Japan

Debt owed as of December 2024: $1 trillion

 

Photo by Colton Jones on Unsplas

The Rest of the World

Debt owed as of December 2024: 1.6 trillion

Total US debt owed to other countries

Debt as of December 2024: $8.5 trillion.