US Labor Department Has ‘Grave Concerns’ About Fidelity’s Plan for Bitcoin in 401(k) Retirement Plans, Wall Street Journal Reports

Fidelity Investment’s plan to allow for the inclusion of bitcoin in its operated 401(k) accounts is facing headwinds from the U.S. Labor Department, which regulates company-sponsored retirement plans, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

• “We have grave concerns with what Fidelity has done,” Ali Khawar, acting assistant secretary of the Employee Benefits Security Administration, told the Wall Street Journal.
• Khawar highlighted the speculative nature of cryptocurrency and the hype around the fear of missing out as reasons his department is concerned about the move.
• Fidelity announced earlier in the week that it plans to offer bitcoin as an investment option for its 401(k) managed accounts.
• The financial giant manages retirement accounts for 23,000 companies in the U.S.
• Fidelity caps bitcoin holdings at 20% of the account’s value.
• Khawar has said that crypto has “intriguing use cases” but needs “maturing” before it's suitable to be placed into a retirement savings account.
• “For the average American, the need for retirement savings in their old age is significant,” he is quoted as saying. “We are not talking about millionaires and billionaires that have a ton of other assets to draw down.”
• Fidelity said that its bitcoin BTC$89,127.04 offering represents a “continued commitment to evolving and broadening its digital assets offerings amidst steadily growing demand for digital assets across investor segments.”

Fidelity CEO Abby Johnson is scheduled to speak at Consensus 2022 in June.