Who's Really Holding America's $36T Debt? (Spoiler: It's Messy)

Everyone’s panicking about foreign countries “owning” U.S. debt, but here’s the plot twist—they actually don’t own that much.

Let’s talk numbers. U.S. national debt hit $36.2 trillion. Yeah, that sounds apocalyptic. But zoom out: American households have $160+ trillion in net worth, so technically we’re fine.

As of April 2025, the top debt holders are:

• Japan: $1.13T (the big player)
• UK: $807.7B (recently surpassed China)
• China: $757.2B (been selling off gradually)

Here’s the thing though—foreign countries combined only hold about 24% of U.S. debt. Americans hold 55%, and U.S. agencies hold the rest. No single country has enough leverage to actually tank the market.

Even when China slowly liquidates its holdings, the market barely flinches. U.S. government bonds are still the safest, most liquid securities in the world.

TL;DR: Foreign ownership goes up and down, pushing interest rates around, but your wallet? Barely affected. The real risk isn’t foreigners—it’s us spending like there’s no tomorrow.