President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that will let Americans invest their 401(k) retirement savings in cryptocurrency, private equity and real estate, marking a major shift in retirement investment options.
The order directed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Labor Department and Treasury to update their rules to give investors access to these alternative assets.
While this move could give alternative asset managers access to a huge new pool of retirement money, some experts worried it might put Americans’ retirement savings at risk.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) at the opening bell in New York, on Aug. 7, 2025.
Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images
“It’s going to be slow going,” Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate, told ABC News. “A lot of providers are reluctant to be early adopters here. They’re worried about potential costs and maybe lawsuits or other consequences.”
Rossman explained that while some private investments were allowed in retirement accounts back in 2020, they still aren’t widely available.
Ted Rossman is a senior industry analyst at Bankrate, specializing in credit cards, credit scores and other personal finance topics.
ABC News
“If you want to have a small part of your portfolio in crypto, that could make sense,” he told ABC News. “Generally speaking, index funds are the best way to go for the average person. Just kind of keep it simple, match the market over time, get low fees.”
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Vanguard, one of the largest retirement plan providers, told ABC News, private assets could offer broader diversification and potentially higher returns for investors with the right risk tolerance and long-term outlook. However, the company emphasized the importance of “educating retirement investors to ensure a clear understanding of the opportunities and risks of investing in private assets.”
The cryptocurrency announcement came on the same day Trump unveiled sweeping new trade tariffs affecting more than 90 trading partners.
These tariffs ranged from 15% to 41%, with most imported goods getting hit with at least a 10% tax. The president also threatened additional tariffs on specific products like pharmaceuticals, lumber and semiconductors.
So far, retailers have managed to avoid passing these extra costs to shoppers by absorbing most of the tariff increases themselves, Rossman explained. However, the National Retail Federation warned this strategy might force stores to cut back on employee investments and growth plans if it continues, he added.
The combined impact of these policy changes left both the investment and retail sectors adjusting to a new economic landscape, with more changes possibly on the horizon, according to Rossman.