Trump Accounts are entering a new phase as the U.S. Treasury expands the program to nearly 70 million children and permits charitable donors to contribute individual company shares. Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell, whose family pledged $6.25 billion to the initiative, is defending the change as critics question whether concentrated stock holdings are appropriate for children’s long-term savings.

From Index Funds to Individual Company Stocks

The new rules, which took effect last week, allow charities to place individual stocks into children’s Trump Accounts. Previously, contributions were required to be invested in diversified, low-cost index funds. Parents and guardians can continue making their own contributions through diversified investments, but donated company shares can be assigned to specific groups of at least 5,000 children based on factors such as age or geography.

The change effectively gives corporations and wealthy donors a new mechanism for transferring equity directly to large groups of children. Treasury officials acknowledge that this can increase concentration risk, but argue that allowing stock donations could encourage substantially larger private contributions.

Michael Dell: Ownership Could Become Financial Education

Dell has rejected the argument that individual-stock donations necessarily create an avenue for corporate influence. In an interview this week, he argued that receiving even a single share could give children a tangible connection to financial markets and encourage them to learn about investing, capitalism and compound returns.

The argument reflects a broader policy objective behind Trump Accounts: expanding participation in financial markets beyond households that already own stocks. As of October 1, automatic enrollment had increased the number of accounts from roughly 10 million to nearly 70 million, although parents and guardians must still claim the accounts. Around 80% of accounts are associated with families earning less than $200,000 annually, according to the White House.

A New Channel for Philanthropy — and New Risks

Dell and his wife, Susan, pledged $6.25 billion to provide $250 contributions for as many as 25 million children in lower- and middle-income areas. More than 10 million children had received the contribution by October 7, representing about $2.6 billion invested, with the full commitment expected to be invested by the end of the week.

The broader question is whether other philanthropists and companies will follow. Dell said he expects additional donors and employers to participate, potentially turning Trump Accounts into a significant channel for private wealth transfers to younger Americans.

However, individual stocks carry a different risk profile from diversified index funds. Under the new rules, recipients cannot reject donated shares and must hold them for five years. That could leave children exposed to the performance of a single company while limiting their ability to rebalance their portfolios.

The next stage of Trump Accounts will therefore depend on the scale of corporate and philanthropic participation and how regulators address concentration and donor-influence concerns. If individual-stock contributions accelerate, the program could become a new source of long-term equity ownership for millions of Americans, while also testing the balance between financial education, diversification and corporate incentives.