End of Over-the-Counter Sales of Paper U.S. Savings Bonds

On the following slides Overview of the end of over-the-counter sales of paper U.S. Savings Bonds How to help customers make the transition to digital bonds

What changed? The U.S. Department of the Treasury ended over-the-counter sales of paper savings bonds at financial institutions Savings bonds are not going away Digital savings bonds can still be purchased online at

Why did the Treasury Department make this change? Ending sales of paper savings bonds will save taxpayers $70 million over the next five years Digital savings bonds eliminate the possibility of bonds being lost, stolen or destroyed With TreasuryDirect, you can manage your savings securely online, anytime Increased preference for electronic options –2010 J.D. Powers survey indicates 51% of bank customers prefer online banking

Financial institutions and savings bonds Financial institutions have been instrumental in savings bond sales: It has been a tradition to purchase paper savings bonds at financial institutions For many years, employees at financial institutions have been viewed as a trusted source for information on savings bonds and other Treasury securities

New applications no longer accepted The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis no longer accepts applications for paper savings bonds The final December paper savings bond orders had to be to the FRB by January 9, 2012

Applications received after Jan. 9 Applications that were not received on time have been rejected and returned It is your responsibility to return the funds to the customer Normally, the Treasury Department would simply assess a penalty and process the late applications – that is not an option as the paper program has ended

Processing reissue requests FRB Minneapolis will no longer contact you to resolve application errors because new applications are not being accepted We will continue to process reissue requests to correct errors with bonds ordered in prior months (i.e., wrong name or SSN#)

Financial institution checklist Do not accept applications for paper savings bonds – paper savings bonds are no longer available Continue to redeem existing paper savings bonds as a service for customers

Helping customers with digital savings bonds Your customers may have questions for your staff about the change to how savings bonds are sold So… Inform customers about the change and direct customers to the Treasury Departments TreasuryDirect site at

Facts about TreasuryDirect TreasuryDirect is a secure, online system that allows users to set up an account to safely and securely: Buy, manage and redeem digital savings bonds Convert paper savings bonds to digital Purchase other Treasury securities, including bills, notes, bonds and TIPS (Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities)

Facts about TreasuryDirect A safe and convenient alternative for your customers: Takes about 10 minutes to sign up Free of charge to open and maintain an online account Proven track record for safety and security

Visit to download: An FAQ to help your employees answer customer questions about the change to how savings bonds are sold and about TreasuryDirect An article for employee newsletters or your Intranet, explaining what employees can do to help customers with the transition What tools are available?

To help with your customer communications, visit to download: Customer fliers noting the change and providing information about TreasuryDirect Handouts explaining how customers can open a TreasuryDirect account or buy a savings bond as a gift Short messages you can include with account statements, reminding customers of the change Sample social media messages reminding customers of the change Web banners for your website

What can you do? Educate your tellers and other front-line staff: –Include updates on intranet/employee newsletter –Distribute employee FAQ Let customers know of the change: –Use web banners and statement messages –Distribute fliers to customers inquiring about savings bonds Let customers know about TreasuryDirect –Provide information on how to access TreasuryDirect –Ideally, please go the extra mile for customers and help them learn how to sign up for a TreasuryDirect account