Wall Street, CEOs back Trump child savings plan
Washington, July 7
Some of America's biggest corporations and financial institutions lined up behind President Donald Trump's newly launched Trump Accounts programme, pledging financial support and describing it as an initiative that could broaden wealth creation for future generations.
The White House event brought together executives from Wall Street, Silicon Valley and major American corporations, signalling rare public backing from business leaders for a government-backed investment programme aimed at children.
President Trump said several companies had already committed funds for employees' children while others were making direct philanthropic contributions.
"I'm getting calls from everybody to put money in, and they're going to put tremendous numbers of dollars in. And these children are going to have actually accounts. They're going to learn about finance a little bit, they can watch it, all watch it grow together," Trump said.
Among the largest commitments announced was a $6.25 billion pledge from Michael and Susan Dell to fund accounts for millions of eligible children born before the programme's rollout.
Micron Technology also announced a $250 million commitment, while Altimeter Capital founder Brad Gerstner said additional pledges from corporate America and philanthropists were expected over the coming months.
Trump said a growing number of employers had decided to incorporate the initiative into employee benefit programmes.
"I also want to recognise all of the outstanding employees who have committed to making contributions toward the Trump account... including Uber, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Visa, Robinhood, Mastercard, Intel, IBM, AMD, Rusk Industries, and Steak 'n Shake," he said.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the initiative was designed to expand stock ownership among American families.
"Through Trump Accounts our president is creating an ownership economy; an ownership economy where all citizens become shareholders. Thirty-eight percent of American families do not have any exposure to our great equity markets, but with Trump Accounts over time, we can get that number to zero," Bessent said.
Wall Street also endorsed the programme.
Nasdaq Chair and Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman said the initiative would allow future generations to participate more directly in the US economy.
"The Trump Accounts are underpinned by the US capital markets... every American will have the opportunity to be a part and share in this prosperity of this nation," Friedman said.
New York Stock Exchange President Lynn Martin described the initiative as "the purest manifestation" of the American dream, while Intercontinental Exchange Chairman and CEO Jeff Sprecher said it widened access to US capital markets for ordinary Americans.
Brad Gerstner said the long-term ambition extended well beyond the programme's initial rollout.
"Today is day one... every child in America, all 70 million kids under the age of 18 deserve to have one of these accounts. We're going to get the accounts open for them. We're going to get them fully funded," he said. Gerstner added that supporters believed they could raise more than $100 billion for children's accounts over the next 12 months.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Great initiative! Teaching kids about finance early and giving them a stake in the economy is exactly what we need. With companies like Goldman Sachs and Nasdaq backing this, it's got serious potential. Every child deserves a head start.
Waah, interesting! But I'm a bit skeptical. Wall Street backing something so quickly makes me wonder about the fine print. In India, we've seen many schemes that look great on paper but benefit the rich more. The $6.25 billion from Dell is impressive though. Hope this actually reaches the neediest children and not just corporate employees' kids.
As a teacher, I love the idea of kids learning about finance. But $100 billion is a lot of money - where's it coming from? Taxpayers need to know. Still, if it works, this could be transformational for the 38% of families with no stock market exposure. I'm cautiously optimistic.
Comparing to India's situation, our Public Provident Fund (PPF) and Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana already do something similar but with government backing and tax benefits. The key difference is the stock market link here - that's both exciting and risky. Markets can crash, after all. But I appreciate the attempt to democratize wealth. Let's watch and learn, yaar.
This is exactly what America needs! I work at a small business and we're looking at how to enroll. The idea that my child could have a market-linked account from birth is incredible. The corporate pledges are a good start but I hope smaller businesses can participate too. Make America an ownership economy again! 🇺🇸
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.