finance
Waters Urges Labor Department to Withdraw Trump-Backed 401(k) Alternative-Asset Proposal
U.S. Representative Maxine Waters submitted an 11-page letter requesting withdrawal of a Department of Labor rule on alternative investments in retirement accounts. The proposal would allow 401(k) plans to include digital assets and other alternatives under a Trump executive order.
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U.S. Representative Maxine Waters submitted an 11-page comment letter to the Department of Labor on June 26 requesting withdrawal of a proposed rule that would allow 401(k) plans to offer investments in private equity, private credit, real estate, commodities and digital assets.
Waters, the ranking Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, addressed the letter to acting Labor secretary Keith Sonderling.
She argued that the department should not approve digital assets for retirement savings while the Securities and Exchange Commission continues work on investor protections. "It is incoherent for the department to bless digital assets as suitable for the retirement savings of everyday Americans while the [Securities and Exchange Commission] is still building the investor-protection regime intended to make those same assets safe for ordinary investors," Waters wrote.
The letter further stated that risks extend beyond token volatility and reflect a broader decline in the digital-asset ecosystem, including reduced trading activity, developer engagement and user participation.
The Department of Labor issued the proposal in March to carry out an executive order President Donald Trump signed in August 2025. That order directed federal agencies to permit alternative assets in government-structured retirement accounts. The rule has not been finalized.
