During a cabinet meeting at Camp David on Friday, August 1st, 2026, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent inadvertently revealed plans for the US to buy between $5 billion and $10 billion in Japanese yen. A Reuters photographer captured an image over Bessent’s shoulder showing a notepad with the underscored words “To Do” followed by “Buy Japanese Yen (JPY) $5-10 bil.” Bessent’s name card was visible just above the notepad.

The photograph was taken at 11:33 a.m. local time, and video footage showed the notepad remained visible when Bessent spoke about 30 minutes later during the televised portion of the meeting.

Earlier on the same day, Reuters reported that the Treasury Department had notified several banks it might intervene in the yen market, according to an unnamed source. The Financial Times later reported that the Federal Reserve Bank of New York sold euros to buy yen on behalf of the Treasury Department.

The yen had recently depreciated to its weakest level since 1986, influenced by factors including rising oil prices, according to Bloomberg News. Data from LSEG showed the dollar fell from approximately 158.9 yen at 4:14 p.m. ET to about 157.6 yen just before 5 p.m., a decline of roughly 0.8%.

A Treasury spokesperson did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment on the notepad’s contents or whether the Treasury had intervened to support the yen’s value against the dollar on that day.

Sources