A group of Democratic lawmakers, including Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Representative Bobby Scott, has urged the US Department of Labor to ban the use of cryptocurrencies in corporate retirement plans. In a letter to Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling, the politicians emphasized that digital assets are excessively volatile, posing a threat of significant financial losses for elderly Americans.

The lawmakers warned that including crypto in retirement accounts would lead to higher fees and increase depositors’ vulnerability to fraud. To support their claims, the authors cited an FBI report stating that Americans lost nearly $21 billion to cybercrimes in 2025, the majority of which stemmed from cryptocurrency-related fraud. The Democrats also expressed concern over the Trump administration’s and the SEC’s course toward deregulation, noting that crypto assets lack the protective guarantees provided to investors in traditional stocks and mutual funds.

The call for a ban comes amid radical shifts in US crypto regulation. In April, the SEC classified 16 major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP, as digital commodities, transferring oversight authority to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The senators had already warned that the rapid change in how securities laws apply to crypto assets means investors cannot rely on legal protections in court.