A supplied news flash says the U.S. Department of Labor has sent a final 401(k) alternative-assets rule to the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for review. The latest official text available here, however, remains the proposed rule published in the Federal Register on March 31, 2026. It does not give blanket approval for crypto in 401(k) plans; instead, it establishes a fiduciary safe-harbor framework for selecting investment options.

What the reported OIRA move would mean now

The flash describes a late-stage regulatory step: submission of a final rule for White House review. That can be an important procedural development, but it is not the same as publication or taking effect. Based on the official record supplied here, the clearest documented stage remains a proposed rule, Fiduciary Duties in Selecting Designated Investment Alternatives, published on March 31, 2026.

The Labor Department's Employee Benefits Security Administration issued that proposal as document 2026-06178 in 91 FR 16088 under RIN 1210-AC38. The current report is therefore best understood as a reported advance in the same rulemaking, not proof that every 401(k) plan can now add crypto products.

How the proposal would treat crypto and other alternative assets

The published proposal concerns fiduciary process, not automatic approval of any particular asset class. Labor Department materials say it would clarify and provide a safe harbor for fiduciaries selecting designated investment alternatives in participant-directed individual account plans, including asset-allocation funds that hold alternative assets.

In other words, the proposed protection would apply to how trustees or plan fiduciaries assess an option. It would not require plans to offer crypto or deem every digital-asset product suitable. According to the Department, the framework rests on six review factors: performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, performance benchmarks, and complexity.

Within that framework, crypto is better viewed as part of the wider alternative-assets issue than as a separately approved category. Any actual 401(k) exposure would still depend on fiduciary judgment, plan-menu design, and the structure of the investment option under consideration.

What is officially on the rulemaking timeline

The formal milestones currently available are the Labor Department's March 30, 2026 announcement of the proposal and its March 31 publication in the Federal Register. The Department said the proposal could broaden potential retirement investment options for more than 90 million Americans. That figure reflects the potential population affected by the rulemaking, not confirmed crypto inflows or guaranteed product availability.

The Federal Register notice set a June 1, 2026 deadline for public comments. Beyond that, the supplied materials do not establish that a final rule has been published, that an effective date has been set, or that an OIRA review entry has been confirmed. The next decisive document would be either a corresponding White House review record or a final Federal Register publication showing which provisions the Department retained, narrowed, or changed.