October 28 is the last chance for investors to buy I bonds that earn an interest rate of 9.62% Yet rising demand for inflation-adjusted bonds has overwhelmed the Treasury Direct site and the Treasury Department. That said, it cannot guarantee that the order will be completed in time
Many investors have lost track of the clock and technical problems. As of 12 p.m. ET, about 52,000 accounts had been created and more than $500 million in I bonds had been purchased on Friday alone, the Treasury said. On Thursday, about 82,000 accounts were created totaling $750 million in I bond sales.
Others are still unable to access the Treasury Direct site or log into their accounts to purchase ibonds.
Stay safe Inflation-adjusted Series I savings bonds Don’t capture much of the investment spotlight in most years. They have become the breakout stars of 2022 Inflation has hit a four-decade highMarkets plunge, and investors search for a safe place to put their money
As the deadline to get the 9.62% rate this week nears, the Govt Treasury Direct SiteThe only place where investors can buy I bonds directly, it has become one of the most visited federal websites, officials said, and has experienced outages for several days this week.
Investors face difficulty in accessing and logging into the site.
“Due to unprecedented requests for new accounts, we cannot guarantee that customers will be able to complete a purchase at the current 9.62% rate by the October 28 deadline. The Treasury Direct system continues and continues to process completed payments,” a spokesperson said.
“We’ve tripled TreasuryDirect’s capacity in the past day and seen customers successfully create accounts and purchase bonds at record levels. Any additional updates to TreasuryDirect in the final days of the rate window, such as the delay of the November 1 rate change, would pose a significant risk to the operational integrity of the system,” a Treasury spokesperson said.
If a customer confirms that their purchase has been made or completed by Oct. 28 at 11:59:59 pm ET, payment will be processed, a spokeswoman said.
Users regularly take to social media to complain about the Treasury Direct website and sometimes Go to great lengths to purchase their i-bonds.
“The TreasuryDirect website is not known for its user friendliness,” said Elliot Pepper, a financial planner in Baltimore.
It’s not just those trying to buy ibonds who are frustrated by the site’s outage.
Investors cannot purchase or redeem T-Bonds, Treasury Notes, or T-Bills through Treasury Direct if they cannot access the site or log in due to high demand.
Write to Veronica Dagher Veronica.Dagher@wsj.com
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
