Financial History Issue 123 (Fall 2017) | Page 39

$1,000 US Treasury Bill, issued January 29, 1970 and due July 30, 1970. withdrew its largest bill in the year 2000: a $1,000 denomination. Given the financial and criminal realties of our modern world, the return of larger denominations is a non-starter. There are even calls by some to end the production of the $100 bill for the reasons outlined above. But no matter the value of the note, the US dollar is an iconic financial wonder. However imperfect our domestic politics, however mind boggling our national debt, the greenback remains the last physically tangible instrument of American financial might and global hegemony. The Treasury Bill, the Treasury Note and the Treasury Bond remain unparal- leled successes in the history of global finance. As of May 2017, the average trad- ing volume of marketable US Treasur- ies stood at so