Owning a home is the American dream. A close second is a secure retirement and its requisite visions of endless golf, hammocks, and spoiling grandchildren. But as America’s population ages, that dream is beginning to slip away.

The Census Bureau reports that the nation’s median age reached 39.1 in 2024, up nearly 10 years since 1980. As America grows older and lives longer, the question of how people will fund longer retirements has become more pressing than ever.  

By their own assessment, many Americans are unprepared for retirement. Nearly 40% of future retirees have little or no savings, and among those who do, three in five doubt their nest eggs will be enough. Private pension plans – once the backbone of retirement security – have become increasingly rare. Today, roughly 70 million Americans, or about 42% of the working population, rely on a 401(k) as their primary retirement vehicle. 

Yet these plans are hampered by limitations as, with few exceptions, they don’t offer access to private market investments. Historically, private equity, real estate and other alternative assets have outperformed public stocks by more than 4% annually from 2003 to 2023, even after fees. Despite this, outdated regulations make it unnecessarily difficult for 401(k) plans to include these high-performing assets. 

Even more concerning is that private equity dominates our economy. Currently 87 percent of companies with revenue over $100 million are privately held. Meanwhile, the number of publicly traded companies has fallen from over 8,000 in 1996 to just 3,700 today, greatly decreasing the opportunities for 401(k) investors to grow their money.

President Trump’s recent Executive Order seeks to change that. The order aims to expand access to private market investments in 401(k) plans by directing the Department of Labor (DOL) to provide private sector employers with guidelines to offer these investments, if they so choose, while also adhering to the strict fiduciary standards required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

This is a welcome step. For too long, the fear of frivolous lawsuits from trial attorneys has discouraged plan sponsors from offering private market options to their employees. This has prevented tens of millions of Americans from having investment opportunities that have long benefited the wealthy and public pension funds. 

Private markets have become a major engine of growth for the global economy. Their assets are projected to surpass $18 trillion by 2027 with forecasters expecting that figure to reach $62 trillion by 2034. Public pension funds already benefit from private market investments – about one-third of their $12 trillion in assets are in private investments.

So why shouldn’t the 70 million Americans who save through a 401(k) have access to the same tools that build a secure, more prosperous future?

This very question is being asked by some of the most influential voices across finance and technology. In a recent conversation between Cathie Wood of ARK Invest and venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya, Wood reflected on a question she often hears from retail investors: “Why can’t we access the private markets? We know more about these technologies than most of the institutions buying them.” 

She added the Trump administration is starting to address this imbalance, calling the lack of access “un-American.” Chamath illustrated the absurdity with a simple example: “You use ChatGPT every day, but you can’t buy OpenAI.”

Their exchange underscores a growing frustration among everyday investors who are locked out of the very innovations shaping the future. While expanding access to private markets is foremost about fairness and choice, it’s also about giving Americans the tools needed to secure their financial future in an ever-evolving economy.

The path forward is clear. Workers saving for retirement through a 401(k) deserve the same opportunities for growth and diversification that pension beneficiaries already enjoy. Allowing private market investments would empower Americans to build stronger and more secure retirements.

The DOL should issue a formal rulemaking that provides a safe harbor for plan sponsors, protecting them against meritless lawsuits that help the retirement accounts of trial lawyers, not American workers. Financial insecurity is no picnic at any age, and a lack of financial resources at retirement can be downright devastating. Let’s fix the system so all workers have a shot at true retirement security.

Gerard Scimeca is chairman and general counsel for CASE, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, a free-market oriented consumer non-profit he co-founded.