Executive Order on 401(k) – What Plan Sponsors Should Know Before Adding Crypto and Other Alternative Investments

In August, President Donald Trump signed an executive order allowing access to alternative assets for 401(k) plan investments. This opens 401(k) investments to cryptocurrencies, private equity and real estate. Adding these options to your plan will take time and a strategy for oversight, especially as litigation surrounding 401(k) investments has increased. With the changes coming into play, plans can take advantage, but it’s essential that you consider the implications for your plan, your participants and your auditors.

As a plan sponsor, you’ve likely been in a space where you’re trying to figure out if you should offer alternative investments or if you should make changes to your plan. The alternative investment options allow greater diversity and may offer higher returns in some cases, but these complicated investments can be difficult to understand in addition to their heightened level of risk.

Previously, cryptocurrencies weren’t necessarily forbidden in 401(k) plan investments, but the Department of Labor’s rules on cryptocurrency essentially labeled it an inappropriate investment and discouraged plans from using it. With the president’s executive order, the policy has undergone an almost 180-degree reversal. Not only is it okay, under this administration, but it’s encouraged.

Before you take any steps towards including newly available alternative options in your own plan, it’s a good idea to explore whether it fits your plan.

Common Types of 401(k) Investments Plans Use Today

There are a wide variety of investments available in 401(k) plans, but some types are more common. Mutual funds, money market funds, pooled separate accounts, general investment accounts offered by insurance companies and even common stocks are some examples of common types of investments. Although there’s always risk with investments, these types are generally low risk and have a lot of viewable information. Their longevity means they’re well-known and easy to understand.

Some less common types of 401(k) investments may include brokerage accounts, if allowed by the plan. Brokerage accounts can contain a lot of different investments, including stocks, mutual funds, CDs and government bonds. Rarely, a brokerage account may hold real estate. Plan participants also have the discretion to choose how to allocate their money, for example splitting it between five different mutual funds. There are guardrails in place to help manage risk and to determine accurate valuations. These accounts tend to have more administrative costs because, as limited as they are, they’re more expensive than your standardized fund line-up.

Adding New Investment Types

Your first consideration when exploring new types of investments should be an asset certification. One of the first questions your 401(k) auditor will ask is if the asset holder, the entity that’s physically holding the assets, will be able to provide an asset certification. If it’s a valid certification, it will cover all the assets and there will be less work for the auditor to do, saving you the expense. If there isn’t a valid certification, or if the certification doesn’t cover all the assets, your auditor will have to do more work on either the uncovered assets or all of them, depending on the level of coverage.

You should also check in with your plan provider to see what their alternative investment options look like. Some providers, such as TIAA, Naveen and BlackRock are expected to introduce options for plan sponsors to take advantage of these new opportunities.

Also consider your employees’ level of financial savvy. Results with cryptocurrency can vary, especially depending on your experience level. How confident are you that employees understand the difference between the various types of cryptocurrencies?

Next Steps to Exploring Your Investment Options

The alternative investment options aren’t up and running yet, so what can you do as a plan sponsor to prepare, protect yourself and the plan? You’ll need to develop an investment policy to help the plan sponsor navigate upcoming changes and ensure your participants’ life savings are protected. Your policy will provide guidance and rules for participants on what investments can or can’t be included in the plan. It should also describe the monitoring and benchmarking procedures that need to be used. Include a description of your committee, including:

  • Members of the committee
  • Who is the committee chair
  • What the committee will discuss
  • How often will the committee meet
  • Any documentation they might have, including minutes

If there is any litigation, your investment policy will be the first thing either attorney will ask for because it will guide what should happen.  

Take this time to examine your investment education policy – do you have investment professionals on staff? If so, do they have experience with these alternative investments or can you supplement with outside support?  The investment landscape is about to get so much bigger; you could be really setting yourself up for problems down the road if you don’t have an investment advisor who can have or develop materials to help prepare you for the upcoming changes.

You can also ask your recordkeeper if they will offer plans with alternative investments like cryptocurrency, what their timeline to adopt new plans looks like and what guardrails they’ll put in place. They may also have some educational materials in the works that they can share with you. If this is a path you want to take, and your recordkeeper isn’t offering alternatives, you have a tough decision to make. Do you tell your participants that you’re sticking with what you already have, or do you switch to a different provider?

Key Considerations as You Decide Next Steps:

  • Some plans have too many funds already, creating a complicated landscape. Adding a fund also adds cost to the plan, either out of the plan sponsor’s pocket or the participants’. A long list of funds can also slow your auditor down, adding layers of complexity that take more time to document, thus increasing the cost of your audit.
  • Keep an eye on the regulatory space. Regulators may reverse the policy or make additional changes.
  • Changes to investment options in your plan could potentially impact your 2026 or even 2025 audits. Adding new options has the potential to significantly increase fees, which can happen from year to year. Talk with your 401(k) auditor to prepare you for the changes ahead. If the fees overbalance the reward, is it really worth the risk for your plan?
  • Maintain detailed documentation of your decisions as they come down the pipe. This additional level of oversight can help you defend your choices if it comes to it.  

In terms of 401(k) plan investment options, it’s a brand-new world. There’s still much to learn and much to be determined but just be aware that it’s up to you how far down the road you go with it.  

For more information on how our 401(k) audit team can help, request a free consultation below to discuss your unique 401(k) audit needs.

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