A significant move that could change how Americans save for retirement is about to be taken by President Donald Trump. As early as this week, Trump is anticipated to sign an executive order permitting professionally managed 401(k) plans to incorporate non-traditional assets like infrastructure funds, gold, cryptocurrencies, and private equity, according to the Financial Times.
According to reports, the upcoming executive order will instruct regulatory bodies to evaluate and eliminate current obstacles that keep retirement plans from incorporating alternative investments. Millions of American savers may have access to a much wider variety of assets as a result. While stressing that no decision is final until Trump himself makes it public, a White House official told, “President Trump is committed to restoring prosperity for everyday Americans and safeguarding their economic future.”
Ties to Trump’s pro-crypto move
Trump’s larger effort to support digital assets is expanded upon by this executive action. Trump pledged to “free crypto” from what he called unduly onerous regulations during his campaign. A Labour Department warning from the Biden administration that discouraged cryptocurrency investments in retirement accounts has already been revoked by his administration. In addition to accepting cryptocurrencies, the new order would allow retirement savers to access commodities like gold, private equity, and infrastructure investments.
Who will benefit from this move?
It is anticipated that this policy change will primarily benefit large investment firms like BlackRock, Apollo, and Blackstone. In order to be ready for any changes, these businesses are now forming alliances with significant 401(k) providers like Vanguard and Empower after years of lobbying for access to retirement funds. Meanwhile, three significant pieces of cryptocurrency legislation were passed by the US House of Representatives on July 17, concurrent with executive actions taken by President Donald Trump. Establishing a precise framework for categorising digital assets as securities or commodities is the goal of the CLARITY Act. Stablecoin regulation is the main goal of the GENIUS Act, which has already passed the Senate and is awaiting the President’s signature. In the meantime, the Anti-CBDC Act aims to prevent the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) without first securing congressional consent.