May 7, 2026
The new Trump administration-backed children's investment program is already drawing billions in philanthropic pledges. Now, there's talk of making it a dramatically more powerful resource.
White House and Treasury Department officials have discussed expanding what can be put into Trump accounts (Section 530A accounts), according to The New York Times (1).
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At issue is whether to allow the world's wealthiest individuals to donate shares of their companies directly into children's accounts — something the current rules don't permit.
What are Trump Accounts?
Trump Accounts were created under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 and feature a pilot program contribution of $1,000 from the federal government for children born between 2025 and 2028 (2).
Other contributors — including family members and employers — can also put in money, totaling up to $5,000 per year per child.
By law, funds must be invested in low-cost index funds or ETFs tracking broad U.S. equity markets, with expense ratios strictly capped at 0.1% (3). Children can't access the money until age 18, at which point the account transitions to a traditional IRA (4). Deposits officially open on July 4.
The program has already attracted enormous private interest. Michael and Susan Dell pledged $6.25 billion to fund $250 deposits for up to 25 million children who live in ZIP codes where median family income is $150,000 or less and who are age 10 and under, according to The White House (5).
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The proposed change and why it matters
The proposal — allowing stock donations directly into accounts — is being spearheaded by Brad Gerstner, founder of Altimeter Capital, who helped build the 530A program (6).
The goal is to utilize the wealth of moguls like Elon Musk or Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang — allowing them to donate shares of Tesla, SpaceX or Nvidia directly into children's accounts rather than converting assets to cash first.
And the appeal for ultra-wealthy donors is significant from a tax standpoint.
Under current IRS rules, if you donate property, including stock, with appreciated value to a qualified organization, you may generally deduct the fair market value of the property (7).
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That means donors who give appreciated shares avoid paying tax on the built-up gains while claiming the full deduction (8).
For children, the upside would be exposure to high-growth individual stocks rather than the steady-but-slower returns of diversified index funds.
The risks the Treasury is wrestling with
The proposal has sparked some debate, according to The New York Times (9).
The index fund requirement was deliberately designed to protect children from the kind of dramatic swings that individual stocks can produce, particularly over decades. There's no telling whether Tesla, Nvidia or SpaceX will still dominate in 15 or 20 years.
We saw companies that seemed invaluable and invincible, like Kodak, file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2012 after its stock price fell below $1 (10). Blockbuster, similarly dominant in its era, collapsed (11) entirely within a decade of its 2004 peak (12).
Betting a child's retirement on any single company's continued dominance carries that same irreversible risk.
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There's also a structural concern: If stock donations are permitted, Trump Accounts could become a massive holding vehicle for tech billionaires' shares, potentially tying up hundreds of billions in stock that can't be sold for years, with consequences for those companies' markets that are difficult to predict (13).
Changing the rules would require amending the statute, potentially with legislation, though there's debate about whether a Treasury rule change or executive order could suffice (14).
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What families should know now
For now, the rules are what they are: According to the IRS, Trump Accounts are restricted during the growth period — from account opening through December 31 of the year the child turns 17 — to investments in broad U.S. equity index funds or ETFs, with total annual private contributions capped at $5,000 per child (15).
After the growth period ends, the account converts to a standard traditional IRA, subject to normal IRS distribution rules, including taxes owed on withdrawals (16).
Whether or not the stock donation proposal moves forward, the core program still represents a meaningful head start for millions of children, particularly those who receive the government's $1,000 seed.
That $1,000, invested at a 10% average annual return, would grow to around $5,560 by the time a child born in 2025 turns 18.
Adding billionaire stock donations to the mix would be a dramatic acceleration, but whether that's a gift or a gamble depends on which billionaire, and which stocks, end up in the account.
Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.
The New York Times (1),(6),(9),(12),(13),(14); Trump Accounts (2); USA Today (3); Fidelity (4); The White House (5); Internal Revenue Service (7),(8); U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (10),(11); Federal Register (15); U.S. Congress (16)
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With a writing and editing career spanning over 15 years, Emma creates and refines content across a broad spectrum of industries, including personal finance, lifestyle, travel, health & wellness, real estate, beauty & fitness and B2B/SaaS/tech.
