Bitcoin News: BTC Overtakes Gold In US Ownership, Paving Path for 401(k) Influx

Key Insights:

• Bitcoin ownership in the U.S. now surpasses gold: 49.6m vs. 36.7m.
• New DOL rules ease Bitcoin access in 401(k) plans.
• A 1% 401(k) shift to Bitcoin could mean $89B in demand.

In Bitcoin news, a May 2025 River Financial report shows 49.6 million Americans (14.3% of the population) now own Bitcoin, outpacing the 36.7 million (11%) who hold gold.

The chart below illustrates this crossover – for the first time, more people hold Bitcoin than gold. This headline has made waves in Bitcoin news, as it suggests digital assets are moving into the mainstream of American wealth preservation.

Bitcoin News: Retirement Accounts and 401(k) Assets

The Bitcoin-for-gold lead comes into sharp focus against U.S. retirement savings. Americans had about $8.9 trillion invested in 401(k) plans by late 2024.

This makes 401(k) accounts a huge reservoir of capital. “Bitcoin news” headlines now note that even a tiny shift of a fraction of these assets into crypto could move markets.

For context, U.S. 401(k) assets alone would dwarf the entire new Bitcoin issuance over the next decade if even 1% were reallocated. Retirement portfolios have traditionally shunned crypto, but attitudes are changing.

Major plan providers have begun offering crypto options: for example, in 2022, Fidelity Investments became the first large 401(k) manager to allow participants to invest part of their retirement savings in Bitcoin through a dedicated digital asset account.

Financial advisers and plan sponsors are watching these trends closely. Survey data and GAO reports confirm that current crypto exposure is negligible in most retirement funds.

But demand may rise: analysts and crypto strategists point out that the $8.9T pool is essentially “zero” crypto today. Industry commentators like macro strategist Andre Dragosch note that this pool could create a “significant demand shock” for Bitcoin if plan menus change. In short, even a modest allocation could translate to billions in Bitcoin purchases.

Bitcoin News: Department of Labor Removes Crypto Barriers

Regulation has been a key hurdle, but U.S. policy is shifting. On May 28, 2025, the Department of Labor announced it had rescinded its 2022 guidance urging 401(k) fiduciaries to use “extreme care” before adding cryptocurrency options.

The new guidance reaffirms a neutral stance: the DOL will “neither endorse nor disapprove” plans that include crypto investments. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer stated fiduciaries, not bureaucrats, should decide on crypto’s place in retirement plans.

This pivot opens the door for plan sponsors to expand access. In practice, it means employers and recordkeepers can more freely add Bitcoin exposure (for example, via new ETFs or brokerage windows) without fear of regulatory censure.

Industry leaders have welcomed the change: Fidelity, which already opposed the “extreme care” directive, signaled it will accelerate development of crypto-friendly 401(k) offerings.

Meanwhile, congressional proposals (in early 2025) aim to explicitly authorize crypto in retirement plans. In essence, recent Bitcoin news is that the retirement-savings framework has become more crypto-friendly, potentially bringing Bitcoin into the portfolios of long-term savers.

What do these trends mean for Bitcoin demand? Analysts emphasize that even tiny allocations could have big effects. For example, moving just 1% of the $8.9T in 401(k) assets into Bitcoin would represent roughly $89 billion of buying pressure.

By comparison, the entire annual issuance of new Bitcoin is on that order of magnitude. Even a 0.1% allocation (about $8.9B) could purchase on the order of hundreds of thousands of bitcoin, enough to influence market liquidity. As one report noted, “even a modest 1% allocation to Bitcoin…could drive significant price volatility”.

Bitcoin news continues to highlight that small exposures carry relatively low risk. U.S. GAO simulations show portfolios with large (20%) Bitcoin holdings experience far higher volatility than those with 1–5% positions.

Allocating just a fraction of a retirement portfolio to Bitcoin thus yields proportionally smaller swings. Many advisors recommend single-digit caps; surveys suggest 1–3% crypto in a diversified retirement mix. The key is that even minor crypto allocations could trigger outsized flows, given the size of 401(k) balances.

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