In a sort of reverse scenario, I suppose I could have my adult daughter gift me an amount every year up to the annual gift limit. I would invest those funds in a separate brokerage account with her as the beneficiary. She would get the account at my passing with a step-up in basis. No taxes for her even though she was the original source of the funding.
Of course, this would need to be funds earmarked for the appropriate time horizon.
I agree that allowing these private asset investments in 401(k) plans is not a great idea, certainly without any investment limits. I'm not overly concerned that many plan participants will explore these investment options. My past experience managing 401(k) plans with self-directed brokerage account portals is that less than 1% of plan participants bothered to explore that option. I suppose modern social media mania might goad some people to blindly stumble into making bad decisions in this area, but perhaps plan participant inertia will continue to rule the day.
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In a sort of reverse scenario, I suppose I could have my adult daughter gift me an amount every year up to the annual gift limit. I would invest those funds in a separate brokerage account with her as the beneficiary. She would get the account at my passing with a step-up in basis. No taxes for her even though she was the original source of the funding. Of course, this would need to be funds earmarked for the appropriate time horizon.
Post: Capital Gains Planning
Link to comment from January 15, 2026
I agree that allowing these private asset investments in 401(k) plans is not a great idea, certainly without any investment limits. I'm not overly concerned that many plan participants will explore these investment options. My past experience managing 401(k) plans with self-directed brokerage account portals is that less than 1% of plan participants bothered to explore that option. I suppose modern social media mania might goad some people to blindly stumble into making bad decisions in this area, but perhaps plan participant inertia will continue to rule the day.
Post: Hedge funds, venture capital. private equity, etc. in a 401k. BAD IDEA!
Link to comment from August 9, 2025