The pension problem is a liability problem and an asset problem at the same time. Payment periods are lengthening while the population paying into them shrinks. More importantly, this pool of long-duration capital is being asked at the same moment to fund trillions of dollars of AI infrastructure, and both demands point at the same money.
USA Today reported on September 13 that a large number of U.S. retirees who spent their lives saving are now deeply anxious about spending and retirement planning amid persistent inflation, rising healthcare and long-term-care costs and financial-market volatility. Multiple surveys show that more than half of U.S. retirees are cutting discretionary spending, delaying medical decisions or considering returning to part-time work. Financial advisers point out that the traditional ‘4 percent withdrawal rule’ can no longer support basic living costs in the current interest-rate and inflation environment, and retirement planning is undergoing a structural reassessment.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are jointly pressing the Department of Labor to strike down a proposed rule that would open up 401(k) retirement plans to cryptocurrency investments. The senators argue that crypto’s high volatility and security risks make it unsuitable for retirement savings. This opposition comes even as Wall Street firms accelerate crypto integration into mainstream financial products, with Franklin Templeton and others expanding tokenized fund offerings.