In the eyes of the central bank, any meddling with maturity or anything less than the receipt of full-payment at maturity would potentially constitute a credit event putting the nation at default.

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Political maturity was also on full display following the death of former president John Atta-Mills in July.

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The IOUs were rated AAA but yielded 100 basis points (that is, a full percentage point) more than comparable maturity AA-rated corporates at the time.

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In Congress, a predatory-lending bill sponsored by Senator Paul Sarbanes would prohibit balloon payments, among other things, in which the bulk of a loan is left unpaid at maturity, often without the full understanding of the borrower who then cannot repay.

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At maturity if the bond paid in full as planned then using extreme leverage the return potential quickly gets into triple digits.

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The most that can be said about these bonds is that if you (a) reach out on the maturity spectrum, (b) hold the TIPS for the full duration and (c) hold them inside a tax-deferred account like an IRA, then you will have a positive return.

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