Financial services firm Fidelity Investments wants to allow retirement savers to add bitcoin (BTC) to their 401(k) accounts. Fidelity is used by as many as 23,000 companies for their retirement plans, so this is big bitcoin news.
Bitcoin for retirement
A 401(k) account is a U.S. state-sponsored account that allows employees to invest. The contributions to this account come directly from the pay slip and in some cases the employer also contributes, depending on the policy pursued. In 2019, there was about $6.2 trillion worth of value in all 401(k)’s.
Fidelity now wants to make bitcoin one of the choices in which to invest, so reports The Wall Street Journal. The service provider provides the pensions of some 23,000 companies. As a result, the employees of these companies will see bitcoin as an option for their retirement plans. Of course they don’t have to invest in this.
Fidelity’s choice to add bitcoin stems from “growing and organic customer interest.” They would like to have a “diverse range of products and investment solutions,” said Dave Gray, chief of retirement offerings at Fidelity, adding:
“We fully expect cryptocurrency to shape the way future generations think about short- and long-term investing.”
Up to 20% of pension in bitcoin
Retirement savers can convert up to 20% of their 401(k) account into bitcoins, should the plan be implemented. However, individual companies can adjust this limit downwards themselves. Employees who choose to add bitcoin to their retirement investments will reportedly receive a notification containing information about what cryptocurrencies are for their education. Do you also want to learn more about Bitcoin? Join Crypto Insiders Premium and try the first 30 days for free!
The move is certainly no surprise given the previous statements from Fidelity. In February of this year, it released another report detailing its findings on Bitcoin, which were extremely positive:
“Bitcoin clearly possesses many good qualities of money, combining the scarcity and durability of gold with the ease of use, storage and transportability of fiat.”
