Summary
On Aug. 7, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled, “Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors,” signaling a fundamental shift in federal policy regarding access to asset classes previously reserved for institutional investors.
The Executive Order aims to allow ordinary workers to invest in alternative assets such as private equity and real estate through their 401(k) plans. The initiative seeks to reduce regulatory obstacles for plan fiduciaries and clarify their duties through ongoing work by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
The DOL is nearing the release of a proposed rule on advisors’ duties when recommending alternative investments for defined contribution plans. According to the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the DOL submitted its proposed rule entitled, “Fiduciary Duties in Selecting Designated Investment Alternatives” on Jan. 13, 2026.
Key Takeaways
In the August order, Trump directed the DOL to propose new regulations on alts in retirement plans subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) within six months. It also directed the DOL to work with other regulators to determine necessary rule changes to ease alternative investment access in 401(k)s, and for the SEC to help with that effort in participant-directed retirement plans.
While such alternative investments have long been part of defined-benefit plan portfolios, such as pensions, they are not expressly barred from defined contribution plans. Nonetheless, fiduciary rules make it challenging to include them in 401(k)s.
See the full fact sheet.
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