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Posted by on Apr 14, 2015 in TellMeWhy |

What Is the Largest Denomination of US Money Printed?

What Is the Largest Denomination of US Money Printed?

What Is the Largest Denomination of US Money Printed? The largest denomination of United States money ever printed was the $100,000 Gold Certificate of 1934 which featured the portrait of President Wilson.

The note was designed for official use only and none of these notes ever circulated outside Federal Reserve Banks. Since 1944, $100 bills are the largest denomination printed by the government.

U.S. currency previously included five larger denominations. Notes in the denominations of $500, $1,000, $5,000, and $10,000 were printed for general use; a $100,000 note was printed for certain internal transactions.

According to the US Department of Treasury website, “The present denominations of our currency in production are $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100. The purpose of the United States currency system is to serve the needs of the public and these denominations meet that goal. Neither the Department of the Treasury nor the Federal Reserve System has any plans to change the denominations in use today.” So now we know what is the largest denomination of US money printed.

Why can’t US print more money to pay debt? If governments print money to pay off the national debt, inflation could rise. This increase in inflation would cut the value of bonds. If inflation increases, people will not want to hold bonds because their value is falling. Therefore, printing money could create more problems than it solves.

Who does the US owe money to? Foreign governments hold about a third of the public debt, while the rest is owned by U.S. banks and investors, the Federal Reserve, state and local governments, mutual funds, and pensions funds, insurance companies, and savings bonds.

Content for this question contributed by Amy Mescher, resident of Manning, Carroll County, Iowa, USA