Entrepreneur Michael Dell and his wife, Susan, will deposit $250 in the individual investment accounts of 25 million American children in a $6.25 billion philanthropic pledge as part of the Trump administration's Invest America initiative.
The initiative, known as "Trump accounts", was created this year under President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act and has sparked a scramble by financial firms looking to participate. The U.S. Treasury will deposit $1,000 into investment accounts for all children born between 2025 and 2028.
The Invest America accounts are expected to open on July 4 next year, but details about how they will work are still unknown. The funds - required to be invested in an index fund that mirrors the performance of the broader stock market - become available at the age of 18 for education, job training, a first home or starting a business.
"We believe the smartest investment that we can make is an investment in children," Michael Dell said at a White House event announcing the donation.
Shares of Dell - which is not affiliated with the couple's foundation - were up more than 3%. Michael Dell founded the technology company in 1984 and serves as its chairman and chief executive officer.
Trump said at the White House that the gift would give middle-class children a stake in American economic and stock market growth. "It really gives them a shot at the American dream," he said. He added that he would make a personal contribution towards the effort.
The Dells said the funds are mainly aimed at children up to age 10, but kids who are older may benefit if the funds remain available after initial sign-ups.
They will put money into the accounts of children who live in ZIP codes where the median family's income is $150,000 or less, according to a spokesperson for the Dells.
Since its creation in 1999, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has given about $2.9 billion for charitable works, mainly focused on education. The couple's $6.25 billion commitment for Invest America comes from other charitable funds and not their foundation.
Michael Dell, who started the company with $1,000 in his freshman dorm room at the University of Texas, is worth nearly $150 billion, according to the Forbes real-time billionaire list.
Financial firms have been scrambling to grab a piece of the program, according to public lobbying records. The Investment Company Institute, a Washington trade group representing the world's largest asset managers, on October 29 wrote to the Treasury urging it to create a "robust and competitive marketplace for account trustees and custodians," rather than picking a single provider for the program.
A competitive marketplace is key to the program's long-term success by incentivizing providers to promote the accounts and provide important educational information, the group said. In a Tuesday statement, ICI reiterated that position and also called for "flexibility in the eligible investments."
Several other industry groups and asset managers, including BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and Ameriprise Financial, have also been lobbying on Trump accounts, public records show. The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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