Fidelity 401(k) crypto: the Digital Assets Account
Fidelity 401k crypto investing is possible, but only if your employer has chosen to offer it. Fidelity describes two routes: a Digital Assets Account that holds bitcoin, or crypto funds purchased through a brokerage window. When a plan includes neither, an IRA rollover is still a way to get that money into crypto.
Fidelity 401(k) and crypto at a glance
- Route to crypto
- A bitcoin account in the plan (Fidelity calls it the Digital Assets Account), only if your employer adds it; or crypto ETFs through a brokerage window
- Switched on by
- Your employer must add the account
- Limit
- Set by your employer
- Cost
- Shown in your plan's yearly fee notice
- Held by
- Fidelity Digital Asset Services, Fidelity's own crypto company
- What it holds
- Bitcoin in the Digital Assets Account; crypto fund shares in a brokerage window
From Fidelity's own page. Compare every 401(k) provider side by side.
If your plan offers none of this: an old Fidelity 401(k) can roll over to a crypto IRA
- iTrustCapital: $500 to buy in and $0 a year on $50,000
- Fidelity Crypto IRA: $500 to buy in and $0 a year on $50,000
- Coin IRA: $625 to buy in and $0 a year on $50,000
Two ways to reach crypto in a Fidelity 401(k)
According to Fidelity, someone saving in a Fidelity 401(k) has these paths to crypto:
- The Digital Assets Account, built to hold bitcoin. It shows up in your plan only if your employer chooses to include it.
- Crypto funds through a brokerage window. Think of this as an add-on within your 401(k), available only when your employer includes it, that opens the door to funds beyond the plan's standard lineup.
These funds are spot crypto ETFs. That is a fund holding actual coins and tracking what they are worth. What you hold is shares in the fund, rather than the coins.
The Fidelity Digital Assets Account
Part of your 401(k) can be placed in bitcoin through this account. Whether it exists in your plan at all is your employer's call, and they also set the cap on the share of your savings allowed into it.
Pricing is not the same for everyone. The charge appears in your plan's fee disclosure, the document from your plan spelling out what each option costs. Check there first, before shifting any money.
Does your employer need to turn it on?
Yes. Your employer has to add the account on their end, because Fidelity cannot switch it on for you. Logging in and finding neither a Digital Assets Account nor a brokerage window means your plan currently has no crypto path.
The government's current position
The Department of Labor, acting on May 28, 2025, pulled back its 2022 guidance. That guidance had told employers to apply "extreme care" when it came to crypto in 401(k) plans. The department stated the standard has no basis in the law, and that it neither endorses nor disapproves of crypto. The decision still rests with employers.
Risks Fidelity points out
Fidelity warns that crypto prices can rise or fall sharply, and crypto isn't protected by FDIC or SIPC insurance.
What to do when your plan offers no crypto
A 401(k) from a former employer can roll into an IRA whenever you like. With a plan at your current job, the only route is an in-service rollover, a shift of 401(k) savings into an IRA while you are still on the job. Not every plan permits it.
IRA accounts can hold spot crypto funds, and regular brokerage accounts can too. Fidelity also offers a Crypto IRA holding the coins themselves, with no account fee, plus a 1.0% charge on every purchase and every sale.
At various balances, here is the cost if you buy a single time and simply hold:
| Amount rolled over | One-time buy fee |
|---|---|
| $10,000 | $100 |
| $50,000 | $500 |
| $250,000 | $2,500 |
When you eventually sell, that same 1.0% charge applies to whatever amount you take out.
How to move the money and avoid a tax bill
The method of moving matters. With a direct rollover, your old plan sends pre-tax money straight to a traditional IRA. Nothing is withheld and nothing is taxed, so if you move $20,000, all $20,000 keeps working in the IRA, with no tax or 10% penalty now. Sending pre-tax money to a Roth IRA instead makes it taxable income for the year.
When the plan pays you directly instead, 20% is withheld for federal tax. On a $20,000 cash-out, that is $4,000. From there, you have 60 days to deposit the entire sum into an IRA, including the withheld portion.
Taking the money as cash is far costlier. Someone aged 45 withdrawing $20,000 while in the 22% federal bracket, plus 5% state tax, ends up with $12,600. The remainder covers $4,400 in federal tax, $1,000 in state tax, and a $2,000 additional tax.
To talk through your own options, call us or use the consultation form, and a retirement specialist can share information, not advice.