Congress created the 530A account — quickly dubbed the “Trump account” by its backers — to seed each eligible child born after December 31, 2024 with a $1,000 federal deposit, compounding in a tax-advantaged structure until adulthood. The official launch date is July 4, 2025. Parents can add up to $5,000 a year on top of the government contribution.
So far, enrollment is running well below projections. Roughly 3.5 million children are born in the United States each year. Analysts cited in a MarketWatch report published this week put the number of accounts actually opened at a fraction of that figure, with the aggregate missed opportunity potentially reaching into the billions of dollars in foregone compound growth.
Reasons vary. A share of parents told researchers they hadn't heard of the program. Another share said they were unwilling to participate. The enrollment process itself — which routes through financial institutions rather than automatic federal registration — adds friction that lower-income families are disproportionately likely to encounter.
The $1,000 federal deposit sits uncollected for every child whose parents don't file the paperwork. The account is named after the current president. The president's name is on the door, and the door is mostly still closed.