Crypto retirement plans face opposition from 53% of Americans

A new national survey has found that 53% of Americans oppose employers offering cryptocurrency in workplace retirement plans, while 77% consider such investments risky.

The National Institute on Retirement Security reported in its survey that 46% of respondents considered cryptocurrency in workplace retirement plans “very risky,” contributing to the 77% who expressed some level of concern.

Crypto retirement plans face resistance from US savers

Opposition to workplace crypto options extended beyond respondents who viewed digital assets as risky. According to the institute, 53% did not support employers offering cryptocurrency as an investment choice within their retirement plans.

Public concern about digital assets emerged alongside deeper anxiety over the condition of the US retirement system. The survey found that 80% of Americans believed the country faces a retirement crisis, compared with 67% in 2020. Another 61% said they were worried about achieving financial security during retirement.

Household costs and debt also affected how respondents viewed their ability to save. According to the report, 68% said preparing for retirement had become harder, while 77% said debt prevented them from putting aside enough money.

Researchers gathered the findings as part of a national survey conducted by Greenwald Research from Oct. 24 through Nov. 14, 2025. The poll included 1,203 US residents aged 25 and older, with the results weighted by age, gender and income to represent the country’s adult population.

The findings indicate that resistance to crypto inside retirement plans is not limited to people who reject digital assets altogether. A May Federal Reserve survey found that 10% of US adults used or held cryptocurrency in 2025, up from 7% in 2024. Roughly 7% held crypto as an investment, while fewer respondents used it for payments or transfers.

Retirement concerns grow as debt limits savings

Financial pressure formed a central part of the National Institute on Retirement Security’s findings. With more than three-quarters of respondents saying debt hurt their ability to save, the survey placed the crypto question within a retirement system already under strain.

According to the institute, concerns over retirement security have increased even as workplace plans remain one of the main savings tools available to US employees. Respondents cited affordability problems alongside uncertainty about whether their savings would support them after they stopped working.

The institute’s separate research on retirement preparedness has also found large gaps in workplace plan access and accumulated savings. Its February 2026 analysis, based on US Census Bureau data, said the median retirement savings balance across the American workforce was below $1,000 and that many employees lacked access to an employer-provided plan.

Social Security supplied about 52% of retirement income for older Americans, according to the same analysis, while approximately 17% of workers had access to a defined-benefit pension as of December 2022. Unlike a traditional pension that promises a defined payment, a 401(k) generally places investment decisions and market risk on the employee.

Crypto can expose a retirement account to sharper price changes than many traditional plan investments. The US Government Accountability Office has previously described digital assets as having unique volatility and said reliable methods for projecting their future returns remain limited, according to a congressional letter citing the agency’s research.

US regulators have removed barriers to crypto in 401(k)s

Federal policy has moved in the opposite direction from the caution expressed by many survey respondents. In May 2025, the Department of Labor withdrew its crypto guidance, which had instructed retirement-plan fiduciaries to exercise “extreme care” before adding cryptocurrency to investment menus.

The department said the earlier standard departed from its usual neutral approach to investment types. After the rescission, officials said fiduciaries should make decisions based on their duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act without the government either endorsing or discouraging cryptocurrency.

President Donald Trump added another policy directive on Aug. 7, 2025, by signing an executive order on alternative assets. The order covered digital-asset investment vehicles as well as private equity, private credit, real estate, and other assets that are not commonly found in defined-contribution plans.

Under the order, the Labor Department was instructed to review its guidance on fiduciary duties and consider changes that could make alternative assets available to retirement savers. The Securities and Exchange Commission was also directed to consult with the department and examine regulatory changes for participants in employer-sponsored plans.

Five days later, the Labor Department rescinded a 2021 statement that had discouraged fiduciaries from considering private equity and certain other alternative investments. Officials said the statement had departed from a neutral, principles-based approach by treating one type of asset differently from others.

Removing the two pieces of guidance did not require employers to offer crypto. Plan sponsors and fiduciaries remained responsible for assessing each investment under ERISA, including whether its costs, risks, and structure were suitable for participants.

Labor Department proposal sets conditions for alternative assets

In March 2026, the Labor Department proposed a new rule explaining how fiduciaries could evaluate alternative assets for workplace retirement plans. The proposal included regulatory safe harbors intended to reduce litigation exposure for fiduciaries that follow specified review standards.

As crypto.news reported in March, the proposed framework covered more than 90 million retirement savers and required fiduciaries to examine performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, redemption terms, and participants’ ability to understand an investment.

Plan sponsors would not have to add cryptocurrency, private equity or private credit to their menus under the proposal. Employers choosing to include such products would need to document an objective review and show that the options met ERISA’s prudence requirements.

Department officials said the proposal would not provide unrestricted access to crypto or private funds. Instead, the rule would replace restrictions based on asset type with individual reviews by fiduciaries responsible for selecting and monitoring plan investments.

Political opposition followed the proposal. In June, three Democratic lawmakers—Sens. Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Rep. Bobby Scott asked the Labor Department to withdraw it.

In their letter, the lawmakers argued that cryptocurrency could expose workers to price volatility, fraud, and weaker safeguards than those available for public securities. They also questioned whether fiduciaries could assess certain digital assets using established methods for measuring value and expected returns.

“The application of securities laws to crypto assets is rapidly evolving,” the lawmakers wrote, adding that some protections available to investors in public securities “may not be available for crypto.”

Their request covered other alternative investments, including private equity and private credit, which the lawmakers said could carry high fees, limited liquidity and difficult valuation methods. The Labor Department’s proposal remained subject to the federal rulemaking process, under which the agency could revise, finalize or withdraw the framework after reviewing public comments.