Trump Wants Bitcoin And Gold In Your 401(k)—And The Math Backs Him Up

A decade ago, the idea of putting Bitcoin or commodities like gold in a retirement plan would've sounded insane. Today, President Donald Trump has the opportunity to radically reshape the way Americans save for retirement.

According to a Financial Times report, Trump is expected to sign an executive order in the coming days that would unlock 401(k) access to a range of alternative investments, including Bitcoin, gold, private credit and corporate buyout funds.

The executive order, expected to arrive within days, would direct U.S. regulators to identify and remove any remaining barriers that prevent these non-traditional assets from being integrated into professionally managed 401(k) portfolios. This would mark a historic shift away from the stock-and-bond-only model that has dominated retirement investing for decades.

Currently, most 401(k) plans are limited to mutual funds composed of publicly traded stocks and bonds. Under Trump's new plan, savers could gain exposure to a much wider spectrum of assets—ranging from digital currencies and precious metals to infrastructure deals and private equity.

The policy push builds on Trump's broader effort to mainstream crypto investing. His administration has already eased enforcement actions against digital asset platforms, and last week the House of Representatives passed three crypto-focused bills with strong support from the White House.

And while critics will call it risky or political, there's something they might not be looking at: performance.

Alternative 401(k) Portfolios Have Crushed The Traditional 60/40

The numbers speak for themselves.

Over the past decade, a diversified portfolio that included stocks, bonds, Bitcoin and gold has dramatically outperformed the traditional 60/40 model.

According to historical data from July 21, 2015 to July 21, 2025, a portfolio made of 60% SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY, 20% iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF AGG, 10% SPDR Gold Shares GLD and 10% Bitcoin BTC/USD delivered a total return of 601.26%—nearly five times larger than the 135.45% return of the standard 60% stocks and 40% bonds mix.

That's an annualized return of 22.1% compared to 8.8% for the traditional 60/40 portfolio.

Had you invested $100,000 into the traditional 60/40 portfolio 10 years ago, it would have grown to approximately $235,450 by July 2025.

Now consider the alternative. That same $100,000 invested in a portfolio with Bitcoin and gold would now be worth roughly $701,260—three times more.

And it's not just about return. While the alternative portfolio exhibited slightly higher volatility at 14.05% compared to 11.22%, it delivered a significantly stronger Sharpe ratio of 1.53 versus 0.8—meaning a higher return per unit of risk.

Period analyzed: July 21, 2015-July 21, 2025	Portfolio: 60% SPY, 20% AGG, 10% GLD, 10% BTC (Quarterly Rebalance)	Portfolio: 60% SPY, 40% AGG (Quarterly Rebalance)
Total Return (%)	601.26%	135.45%
Annualized return (%)	22.09%	8.83%
MAX Drawdown	-26.7%	-21%
Volatility	14.05%	11.22%
Sharpe Ratio	1.53	0.8

The Next 10 Years: $2 Million On The Table?

If history repeats—and that's a big if—a $701,260 investment today in the alternative portfolio could grow to over $5.2 million by 2035, simply by maintaining the 22.1% annualized return.

That's a stretch, especially with Bitcoin entering a more mature, institutional phase and stocks unlikely to repeat their post-pandemic boom.

Even if returns are cut in half to just 11%, the same portfolio would still climb to nearly $2 million—blowing past the projected $537,000 that a traditional 60/40 mix would deliver at its historical rate.

Not Just Politics—A Portfolio Revolution

This is the power of compounding—and it's the strategy long-horizon investors like pension funds and endowments already count on.

If implemented, the policy could fundamentally change how Americans grow retirement wealth—offering access to high-growth, low-correlation assets that have outperformed the standard model over the last decade.

In an era where inflation, debt and market volatility are redefining risk, the real question may not be whether these assets belong in your 401(k), but why they weren't there already.

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