A proposed rule that could make it easier to offer cryptocurrency through US 401(k) retirement plans has reached the White House for final review. Because 401(k) plans are the primary employer-sponsored retirement savings vehicle for US workers, the measure could shape how workplace savers first gain access to digital assets through their retirement accounts.

The Labor Department filed the alternative-assets rule with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) on Thursday. OIRA is part of the Office of Management and Budget and reviews federal regulations before publication.

BREAKING: 🇺🇸 The rule that would allow crypto in 401(k) retirement plans has reached the White House for final review. Once approved, Americans could invest in crypto through their 401(k)s. pic.twitter.com/6lDMnFlasP — Bull Theory (@BullTheoryio) November 6, 2026

The filing follows an executive order from President Donald Trump directing the Labor Department to create a path for alternative assets in retirement plans. The assets covered by the initiative include digital assets and private equity. The department first unveiled the proposal in March.

The proposal does not identify specific cryptocurrencies that could be included in 401(k) plans, nor does it establish a minimum market capitalization. Instead, it instructs plan managers to assess potential investments using six factors: performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, benchmarks and complexity.

The rule is intended to provide employers and plan managers with greater legal protection when evaluating alternative investments. It would not require any retirement plan to offer cryptocurrency.

In its filing, the Labor Department said it must balance potentially higher expenses with the objectives of achieving better long-term returns and increasing diversification. The department also said it was still evaluating the costs associated with the rule but did not provide an estimate.

The Labor Department previously reversed guidance issued by the Biden administration that discouraged retirement managers from considering cryptocurrency — a sign of how the federal stance on retirement-plan crypto has flipped across administrations. Earlier this year, Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren urged the department to abandon the rule, arguing that it could expose investors to volatile assets.

Bitcoin and Ether Expected to Come First

Teresa Goody Guillén, managing partner at Bellementis PLLC, said Bitcoin and Ether would likely be the first digital assets considered for 401(k) products because of their established markets and available investment products.

CoinGecko data showed Bitcoin with a market value of about $1.5 trillion and Ether with a market value of approximately $273 billion as of 20:01 UTC on Nov. 6.

Guillén said smaller cryptocurrencies were not automatically excluded under the proposal. Plan managers would instead have to demonstrate that a particular investment met the same standards applied to other retirement options.

“Big doesn’t mean suitable, and small doesn’t mean disqualified,” she said.

Bernardo Brites, co-founder and CEO of Trace Finance, offered a stricter assessment. He said Bitcoin clearly met the six-factor test and that Ether also passed. Other tokens, he said, could be rejected based on their track records or available benchmarks before market capitalization became a consideration.

Brites said a practical requirement would be for a plan committee to document a reliable daily price from a regulated product.

“If not, it is not going in,” he said.

ETFs Could Precede Direct Holdings

Experts expect any adoption of cryptocurrency in 401(k) plans to occur gradually. Guillén said exchange-traded funds and managed funds would likely become available before plans offered direct cryptocurrency holdings because those products fit more easily into existing custody and recordkeeping systems.

Direct ownership of cryptocurrency would raise additional questions involving storage, cybersecurity and pricing. Guillén said those concerns should not automatically exclude direct holdings.

Brites expects existing brokerage options to appear first, followed by standalone exchange-traded funds and funds containing smaller allocations to cryptocurrency. He expects some options to become available in 2027, exchange-traded funds at larger employers later that year, and broader availability by 2028.

Legal Protection Remains Limited

Brites said uncertainty over legal exposure could slow adoption. The proposal would provide plan managers with some protection against lawsuits, but it would not prevent participants from suing over investment decisions.

He noted that guidance issued in 2022 was reversed in 2025. A plan designer entering into a 10-year plan would therefore have to consider the possibility that the new rule could also be reversed, he said.

Brites also said courts now give federal agencies less deference, leaving the practical scope of the proposal’s legal protection unsettled.

White House review could take up to 90 days, according to Brites. Publication would follow the review, and a rule typically takes effect about 60 days after publication — making the publication date the next milestone for employers and plan providers to watch.

Source: CoinCentral