Treasury's I-bond site crashing as demand surges for 9.62 percent bonds
A warning on the TreasuryDirect website states that it is dealing with historic volumes of traffic.
NEW YORK - The Treasury Department website consumers use to buy government bonds has been crashing due to demand for people rushing to buy 9.62 percent I-bonds before a midnight deadline on Oct. 28. Some current users trying to log in on Friday morning were unsuccessful and people attempting to set up new accounts were also reporting being able complete the process.
Series I savings bonds protect you from inflation. With an I bond, you earn both a fixed rate of interest and a rate that changes with inflation. The rates are set twice a year, setting them to the current inflation rate for the next 6 months. They are due to be adjusted starting on Nov. 1 and are expected to drop to around 6.5%.
A warning on the TreasuryDirect website states that it is dealing with historic volumes of traffic: "We are currently experiencing unprecedented requests for new accounts and purchases of I Bonds. Due to these volumes, we cannot guarantee customers will be able to complete a purchase by the October 28th deadline for the current rate. Our agents are working to help customers who need assistance as quickly as possible."
The official government website has long been ridiculed as clumsy and outdated and looks more like a relic from 20 years ago than a current website.
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A buyer must complete the purchase and receive a confirmation email by October 28, 2022, at 11:59:59 p.m. ET.
I Bonds purchased by that deadline will have an October 1st issue date and will receive the published rate for six months.
Due to high volumes, the Treasury Department says it cannot guarantee that any bond purchases today will be completed before this deadline if the user's account or purchase requires additional customer support for issues such as identity verification.
Due to processing and payment settlement timeframes, bonds purchased in TreasuryDirect from October 29 through October 31 will be issued in November. As a result, these bonds will receive the rate announced by Treasury on November 1.
With the stock markets suffering this year and savings rates remaining at very low levels, people have been turning to the I Bond program with it's guaranteed returns. There is a $ 10,000-a-year limit for purchases. An additional $5,000 can be purchased if it comes from an IRS tax refund.
Users can sell I bonds after holding them for a year but will lose some interest earned. After holding them for 5 years they can be sold without any penalty.