Bitcoin in Your IRA? What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Bitcoin in Your IRA? What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Even the most adventurous investor would acknowledge that cryptocurrencies are risky. And that saving for retirement should be a search for a measure of safety.

Yet salespeople have been blanketing potential investors with email pitches urging them to put Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies into individual retirement accounts. They tout eye-popping gains, warn of scary inflation and highlight endorsements to help legitimize the asset. The leading company in the field, Bitcoin IRA, recently unveiled a mobile app that makes it easy to make a crypto trade with retirement savings with the swipe of a finger.

The effort seems to be working. The company, which specializes in helping people convert ordinary IRAs to those that can hold Bitcoin, said that since 2016, it's processed more than $1.5 billion worth of transactions for more than 100,000 users. And that's just one player. Others have popped up to entice investors to put money into the asset long-term, despite its more recent dips.

For those relatively new to the world of crypto, including experienced market investors, buying into the hype using money earmarked for retirement could prove disastrous. While companies like Bitcoin IRA may provide some protective guardrails, there's still so much that could go wrong.

First, there's volatility.