US government debt just passed $40 trillion for the first time. The Treasury put the total at $40.05 trillion on Tuesday. Bitcoin (BTC) traders now ask if the $40 trillion US debt record makes crypto the better place to hide.
The number is hard to picture. It works out to about $119,700 for every American. Interest alone costs nearly $1.2 trillion a year. That feeds fears of a doom loop, where borrowing costs force even more borrowing.
Why the $40 Trillion US Debt Number Matters
The government spent $432.3 billion more than it earned in July alone. That was the widest monthly gap since March 2021. This fiscal year's shortfall is already near $1.8 trillion. The latest trillion piled up in just 154 days. The first trillion took until the end of 1981.
Table tracking each trillion-dollar step in US debt from 1981 to the $40 trillion US debt record in 2026. Source: BeInCrypto The debt has grown by $17 trillion since 2020. A decade ago, it stood near $19.4 trillion. Meanwhile, public debt now roughly equals the size of the entire US economy.
Interest is now the government's third-biggest bill. Only Social Security and Medicare cost more. The squeeze hits regular people too. Higher borrowing costs shape whether households can afford Bitcoin and crypto at all.
So what is the doom loop, exactly? It is a spiral with four turns. Washington borrows more, so bond buyers demand higher yields. Higher yields raise the interest bill. A bigger bill widens the deficit, and the deficit forces fresh borrowing. Each turn feeds the next.
Markets have watched smaller versions play out. The UK hit one in September 2022. Unfunded tax cuts sent gilt yields spiking until the Bank of England stepped in. The US has had its own warnings. Moody's removed the country's last triple-A credit rating in May 2025. Fitch acted in 2023, and S&P did in 2011.
BREAKING: Total US debt officially hits trillion for the first time in history.
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) August 19, 2026
That's 9,699 in US debt for every American.
This puts the total US debt balance up + trillion since 2020 and + trillion since 2008.
We are on an unsustainable fiscal path. https://t.co/SLNs0MfTgD pic.twitter.com/kNIZDIZVeq
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Bond Market Stress Builds the Bitcoin Case
Bond investors are demanding more to lend to Washington. Treasury yields have climbed since late June to levels last seen before the 2008 crisis. The 10-year note paid 4.72% on August 17, per St. Louis Fed FRED data.
That forced a response. The Treasury said Wednesday it will double buybacks of long-dated bonds. BeInCrypto reported earlier that expanded long-end buybacks helped pull the 30-year yield off its highs.
Treasury said it is at least doubling the maximum size of purchases of longer-dated nominal coupons in its program to buy back government debt, raising the cap from billion to at least billion per operation beginning Sept. 9. https://t.co/LKAXZ7L5bY
— Nick Timiraos (@NickTimiraos) August 19, 2026
Three forces are pushing yields up:
Companies are borrowing big to build artificial intelligence data centers. Investors want extra pay for holding long bonds. Also, many doubt the Federal Reserve will keep inflation in check.Bitcoin, meanwhile, briefly reclaimed $70,000, marking the first time in almost 80 days, starting June 2. Sentiment is the BTC price looks better every time the bond market sells off.
Bitcoin Price Performance. Source: TradingView Debasement Trade Meets a Cautious Fed
The bullish story has a name. Traders call it the debasement trade. The bet is simple. Governments drown in debt, print money, and hard assets win.
Some companies are all in. Strategy holds 840,447 BTC. Japan's Metaplanet owns over 43,000 BTC and wants 100,000 by year-end.
However, the trade is not a straight line. Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) lost $4.9 billion in the second quarter. Hedge demand comes and goes.
The Fed is another hurdle. Hawkish Fed minutes out Wednesday showed three officials wanted a rate hike. Chair Kevin Warsh even floated fewer policy meetings. That leaves less easing for markets to hope for.
The question now is simple. Can Washington steady the debt before the doom loop kicks in? Upcoming bond auctions may show whether investors see $40 trillion as a warning or just another number.
Read the Original story US Debt Tops $40 Trillion: Will the Doom Loop Drive Bitcoin Demand? by Lockridge Okoth at beincrypto.com