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Where do countries / national governments borrow money from? 
Depends on the country, whether its a currency issuer with floating exchange rate, and what the debt is denominated in. For instance, the US has no real debt, b/c its all in US dollars and can be printed at any time. It has no need to borrow anything, it issues its own currency. It used to be different 4 decades ago, on the gold standard, so in general people still think currency issuers need to borrow (or earn) to spend. Just a relic in thinking.  But when the country does not issue its own currency, then it does need to earn or borrow in order to spend. In this case, it could borrow from anywhere that will lend it money. In US, a state would fit this description. Or Greece, as it borrowed Euros, for which it is not an issuer of.  EDIT: just came across this blog http://pragcap.com/where-does-the-money-come-from Its title, "Where does the money come from". Maybe he saw this question. Anyway, the US does not need to borrow money. Why would it borrow what it creates? From the video: "Thinking is hard, that's why we don't do it a lot". Great line.