In line with the FOMC’s directives, SOMA holdings of Treasuries and agency MBS decreased by nearly $700 billion during 2024. The runoff of SOMA securities, which make up 95 percent of Federal Reserve assets, drove the overall decrease in the size of the balance sheet.
During the year, balance sheet runoff continued to be guided by the monthly caps set by the FOMC. The FOMC directed a slowing of balance sheet runoff in June by decreasing the cap on Treasury securities redemptions from $60 billion to $25 billion. Holdings of Treasury securities (in light blue) declined from $4.79 trillion to $4.29 trillion during 2024, making up about 70 percent of total SOMA runoff by the end of 2024.
The FOMC kept the monthly agency MBS cap unchanged at $35 billion during 2024. As principal payments remained well under this cap, there were no reinvestments. Agency MBS holdings (in bright blue) decreased from $2.42 trillion to $2.23 trillion, making up about 30 percent of total SOMA runoff by the end of 2024.