The Trump administration has moved closer to changing how 401(k) retirement plans consider cryptocurrency investments. The Department of Labor sent its final-stage rule to the White House on November 5, but the measure has not taken effect.
The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) received the rule, titled “Fiduciary Duties in Selecting Designated Investment Alternatives,” from the Labor Department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration. Its public docket identifies the measure as a final rule under review, with no legal deadline listed.
The submission follows a proposal that Labor published on March 31. That proposal would clarify how retirement-plan managers assess investments, including funds that hold cryptocurrency, private equity and real estate. The department seeks to reduce uncertainty about managers’ legal duties when choosing investments for employees.
However, the White House filing does not publish the final rule's text. OIRA may review the measure before the department releases its final version. The review has not changed the investments available to Americans through their retirement plans.
The March proposal outlines six factors for retirement-plan managers to assess: performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, benchmarks and complexity. Under the proposed safe harbor, managers who carefully assess relevant factors would receive a presumption that they met legal standards for prudent investment selection.
For example, managers would consider expected returns after costs and whether an investment offers enough liquidity to meet retirement withdrawals or plan transfers. They would also examine how investments are valued and whether suitable benchmarks exist to compare performance.
Labor Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling described the proposal as “decidedly neutral” toward investment types. The framework would apply to investment options generally, not only cryptocurrency. It would not require employers to add Bitcoin or other digital assets to their plans.
The measure follows President Donald Trump's August 7, 2025, executive order calling for wider access to alternative assets in retirement accounts. That order directed Labor to clarify the duties of plan managers when considering funds that hold digital assets and other investments.
The proposal has faced opposition from Democratic lawmakers who question the protections available to retirement savers. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, alongside Representative Bobby Scott, urged Labor in June to withdraw the plan, citing risks associated with digital assets and private investments.
In their letter, the lawmakers warned that the proposal “would compound, rather than address, the problem” of protecting retirement savings. They argued that plans should focus on costs, stability and safety rather than exposing workers to products carrying higher fees or greater uncertainty.
Separately, Labor reversed its earlier policy on cryptocurrency in May 2025. It withdrew guidance from 2022 that had urged retirement-plan managers to exercise “extreme care” when considering crypto. The department said it would neither endorse nor reject an investment solely because it involved digital assets.
The White House review is the next step before Labor can publish its final rule. Even after publication, employers and plan managers would still decide which investments to offer, following their duties under federal retirement law.
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