$10 trillion influx! The White House has approved the review, and 401(k) retirement plans can now invest in cryptocurrencies.

On March 26, 2026, a regulatory obstacle that will be remembered in financial history was removed.

The internal review agency under the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) officially announced: the review of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) regarding new regulations for 401(k) retirement plans has been completed.
This means that the long-standing "pension into crypto" policy has now gone through all internal White House procedures.
It is expected that the Department of Labor will formally release the rules in the coming days: allowing 401(k) plans with a total of up to $10 trillion to include cryptocurrencies and private equity in their investment portfolios.
In 2022, the Department of Labor issued a statement urging extreme caution regarding cryptocurrencies; but as of 2026, that restriction has been completely shattered.
The rules will shift from "discriminating against certain assets" to "neutral in responsibilities"—as long as risk assessments are in place, Bitcoin becomes a legitimate retirement asset.
401(k) is the most valuable "leek" (retail investor).
In the financial world, 401(k) funds are called the "best bullets (leeks)" because pensions are locked-in for 20-30 years.
Unlike retail investors who frequently buy and sell, pension funds, once invested, are "ultimate holders" that only buy and never sell.
Most people do not manually adjust their 401(k) investment options but rely on "target date funds (TDF)" for default allocation.
As long as the new regulations are approved, fund managers (such as Vanguard, Fidelity) can directly include 1%-3% of crypto or private equity in the underlying assets. Then, once workers' wages are deposited, the automatic buy mode kicks in!
Previously, employers hesitated to include cryptocurrencies due to fear of employee lawsuits.
Now, this new regulation provides a "Safe Harbor," meaning that as long as specific procedures are followed, employers no longer bear the risk of asset volatility.
The inclusion of 401(k) marks the transformation of cryptocurrencies from a "financial speculation" into a "macro asset that must be allocated."
It’s like connecting Bitcoin’s "water reservoir" to the automatic salary faucet of 160 million American workers.
Each year, American employees contribute about $500 billion to $600 billion into 401(k). If 3% of that flows into crypto through automatic deductions, it will generate approximately $15 billion to $20 billion in net inflow annually.
Crypto alongside AI: sharing the cake
While the regulations passed review, the Trump administration announced the new list of the Presidential Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), explaining why policy progress is so rapid.
Crypto giants are entering the scene: Marc Andreessen (founder of a16z, top venture capital in crypto) and Fred Ehrsam (co-founder of Coinbase) have been officially appointed as advisors.
Other members include Jensen Huang (Nvidia), Su Zifeng (AMD), and Mark Zuckerberg (Meta).
Just after stepping down from the position of "White House Crypto and AI Czar," David Sacks (David Sacks) now serves as co-chair of the council.
Looking back at this new 401(k) regulation, including cryptocurrencies is aimed at boosting Bitcoin prices, and including private equity is naturally for AI enterprise financing.
Well, both crypto and AI (and their bubbles) have bright futures.