Crypto 401(k): Sound financial planning or gambling with the future?
In April, United States-based retirement plan provider Fidelity Investments moved to allow 401(k) retirement savings account holders to invest directly in Bitcoin (BTC), the flagship cryptocurrency, making crypto a potential part of one’s savings for the future.
A 401(k) is a retirement savings plan offered by many U.S. employers that give the saver tax advantages and allow for several different investment options. Fidelity’s move will make it easier for Bitcoin to be among those options.
In a typical 401(k) plan, employees agree to have a percentage of each paycheck paid directly into an investment account created for the plan, while employers often match part or all of the employees’ contributions.
Fidelity is the largest retirement plan provider in the United States, and its BTC rollout will make the cryptocurrency available to more than 40 million employees — assuming their employers decide to offer it. Investors who take advantage of the initiative could effectively become tax-advantaged long-term BTC hodlers removing coins from circulation every month.
The company’s plan limits BTC allocations to a maximum of 20% and allows companies to make the threshold even lower. Offering cryptocurrency options for 401(k)s isn’t new, however. In June 2021, another retirement plan provider, ForUsAll, partnered with Coinbase to offer BTC exposure to its account holders.
ForUsAll even recently filed a lawsuit against the Department of Labor and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking the withdrawal of a compliance assistance release.
The release states that the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration will “conduct an investigative program aimed at” 401(k)
Read more on cointelegraph.com
