BlackRock 主张，仅靠指数化投资已不足以支撑美国退休者的 401(k) 风险管理与长达数十年的提领需求。Nick Nefouse 指出，市场波动上升与指数权重集中化，正在提高单一路径配置的脆弱性。该公司研究认为，确定提拨制帐户应由「退休储备」转向「终身薪资」，并可纳入保证收入机制，以提升现金流可持续性与下行风险缓冲。

政策与产业动能正在加速此转向。Apollo Global Management 与 Blackstone 持续推动将私募资产纳入确定提拨制计划；2025 年相关行政命令亦为后续正式提案铺路。BlackRock 自 2009 年收购 Barclays Global Investors 后长期主导被动投资，但现已加码私募市场：累计并购支出超过 250 亿美元（原文 >$25 billion，约 2.5×10^10 美元），其中去年收购 HPS Investment Partners 即达 120 亿美元（原文 $12 billion，约 1.2×10^10 美元），约占前述总额的 48%。

执行层面上，BlackRock 计划于今年推出纳入另类资产的目标日期基金，起步可能先放在流动性相对可控的私募信贷，而非近年交易机会较少、流动性更低的私募股权。配置节奏将采渐进式：先以「数个百分点」试配，再随时间扩大，并明确排除由 0% 直接跳升至 10% 或 20% 的作法。此审慎路径也回应了近期私募债减记与零售私募信贷基金估值重挫所引发的监管与投资人检视压力。

BlackRock argues that index-only investing is no longer sufficient to support 401(k) risk management and multi-decade withdrawals for US retirees. Nick Nefouse says rising volatility and concentration in index weights are increasing fragility in single-path allocations. The firm’s research contends that defined-contribution accounts should shift from a “nest egg” to a “paycheck for life,” potentially with guaranteed-income features to improve cash-flow durability and downside protection.

Policy and industry momentum are accelerating this shift. Apollo Global Management and Blackstone have continued lobbying to add private assets to defined-contribution plans, and a 2025 executive order further opened the path for a formal proposal. BlackRock, a long-time indexing leader since its 2009 acquisition of Barclays Global Investors, is now expanding in private markets: cumulative deal spending is above $25 billion (>2.5×10^10 USD), including $12 billion (1.2×10^10 USD) last year for HPS Investment Partners, about 48% of that total.

On implementation, BlackRock plans to launch target-date funds with alternatives this year, likely starting with private credit, where portfolio integration may be more manageable than in private equity, which is less liquid and has seen fewer recent opportunities. The allocation path is explicitly gradual: begin with only a few percentage points, then scale over time, while ruling out jumps from 0% straight to 10% or 20%. This caution also reflects heavier scrutiny after private-debt writedowns and sharp declines in some retail private-credit funds.