A Department of Labor rule that could allow crypto in 401(k) plans has reached the White House for final review, marking a late stage in a process that began with a presidential order in 2025.
What the rule does
The rule, formally titled “Fiduciary Duties in Selecting Designated Investment Alternatives,” comes from the Department of Labor (DOL). It lays out a defined process for fiduciaries to evaluate investment options, including factors such as performance, fees, liquidity, valuation requirements, benchmarks, and complexity.
Crypto and other alternative assets would be weighed using that same framework. The rule does not mandate that any plan add digital assets.
How it got here
The process traces back to President Trump’s Executive Order 14330, signed on August 7, 2025, which directed the DOL to revisit its guidance under ERISA, the federal law governing private retirement plans, within 180 days. The order specifically called for a fresh look at alternative investments in retirement accounts, naming digital assets alongside more traditional alternative asset classes.
Even before that order, the DOL had already started to shift its stance. On May 28, 2025, the department fully rescinded a 2022 warning that told fiduciaries to use “extreme care” before adding crypto options to 401(k) menus.
The proposed version of the current rule then cleared interagency review at the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) on March 24, 2026.
So far, no final rule has been issued. Fiduciaries are still operating under standard ERISA prudence requirements, the same legal duty of care that has always applied.
In the meantime, plan sponsors that want crypto exposure have generally leaned on indirect routes, such as managed funds that hold digital assets, rather than plans holding the assets directly.
What’s at stake
The defined-contribution market could be valued between $10 trillion to $14 trillion and encompasses approximately 715,000 401(k) plans.
