A government bond is a bond issued by a national government, generally with a promise to pay periodic interest payments and to repay the face value on the maturity date. Government bonds are usually denominated in the country's own currency. Government bonds are sometimes referred to as "'sovereign bonds"'. Technically any bond issued by a sovereign entity is a sovereign bond, but the term is usually used to refer to bonds issued in a currency other than the government's own currency. If a government or sovereign is close to default on its debt the media often refer to this as a sovereign debt crisis.