a treasury bill t bill is a short term u s government debt obligation backed by the u s department of the treasury terms range from four to 52 weeks t bills are issued at a discount from the par value also known as the face value 
treasury bills are usually sold in denominations of 100 however some can reach a maximum denomination of 5 million in noncompetitive bids 1 the treasury sells t bills during auctions using a competitive and noncompetitive bidding process investopedia michela buttignol