The US Department of Labor has expressed concerns about an initiative by US holding company Fidelity to include cryptocurrencies in US retirement accounts.
Ali Khawar, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Employee Safety Authority (EBSA), told The Wall Street Journal that the agency does not know the implications of Fidelity’s initiative.
The company announced on Tuesday that it will allow members of its 401(k) retirement savings program to invest up to 20% in bitcoin. After that, MicroStrategy announced that it would join the initiative and also offer its employees retirement savings plans in cryptocurrency.
According to Dave Gray, head of Fidelity’s pension offerings department, the company sees growing interest from investors and customers in the opportunity to invest in bitcoin. At the moment, according to Cerulli Associates, almost a third of the funds managed by Fidelity are held in retirement accounts.
The Department of Labor appears to be concerned that other companies may join the program, following the example of Microstrategy. The US pension system is not ready for radical changes, given the instability of the cryptocurrency market and the lack of a clear legislative framework.
Back in March of this year, the US Department of Labor urged employers to exercise extreme caution when adding cryptocurrencies to retirement savings plans.
