Bitcoin Approaching $10.8 Trillion Retirement Market: White House Now Turning

Americans may soon be able to invest in crypto through their retirement account. A new rule from the U.S. Department of Labor has reached the final stage and is now at the White House for review. This brings a huge pension market of more than 10 trillion dollars one step closer to Bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto coins.

The rule was filed with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, part of the White House, on November 5. There he is now judged as the final rule.

The plan is not just about crypto. It should give pension managers more scope to also include alternative investments such as private equity, real estate and digital assets in 401(k)plans.

A 401(k) is a commonly used U.S. retirement account where employees set aside money through their employer for later. That money is then invested in a selection of funds and other products.

The new rules would not oblige employers to add Bitcoin or other crypto. In particular, pension managers are given a clearer framework with which they can determine for themselves whether such an investment is justified.

In doing so, they must consider, among other things, returns, costs, liquidity, valuation, comparable investments and the complexity of the product.

The size of the US pension market makes the development interesting for crypto. Americans had about $10.8 trillion in 401(k)plans at the end of June.

Even a small shift can have major consequences. An allocation of just 2 percent would theoretically amount to about $216 billion.

That does not mean that this amount actually goes towards crypto. Employers, pension managers and employees ultimately have to choose for themselves and there are no commitments for such allocations yet.

The US government has clearly relaxed its attitude towards crypto in pension plans in recent years. In 2025, the Department of Labor repealed previous guidelines that called on pension administrators to be “extremely cautious” with crypto.

The new rule now goes one step further by laying down how managers can assess such alternative investments responsibly.

The White House does not have a fixed deadline for the assessment. As long as that procedure is ongoing, the rule is therefore not yet definitively in force. But the last step has now been reached.