Betterment Advisor Solutions, the RIA custody arm of robo-adviser Betterment, is rolling out its solo 401(k) to advisor networks Osaic and Hub International to help their advisors target the roughly nine million self‑employed Americans in unincorporated businesses who lack a solo 401(k).
Among the 10.6 million Americans currently self-employed through unincorporated businesses, only 15-18% have adopted a solo 401(k), according to federal reserve data cited by financial services firm Nabers Group. The expansion to national retirement partners follows last year’s roll-out of solo 401(k)s for RIAs who custody client assets with Betterment Advisor Solutions. Betterment says that one in five advisors on BAS have opened a solo 401(k) as of December 2025.
“We have seen consistent interest and adoption for this product - it was one of the most requested products for our advisor clients and we have seen positive adoption from our retail clients as well,” Thomas Moore, senior director of B2B partnerships at Betterment, told InvestmentNews.
Advisors will not be required to custody clients’ non solo 401k assets with Betterment. Osaic’s entire network of around 10,000 advisors and financial professionals will be able to offer Betterment’s solo 401(k) to clients as over 80% of self-employed Americans with unincorporated businesses lack a solo 401(k).
“This adoption gap, combined with SECURE 2.0 incentives and expanding state retirement mandates, creates a significant growth opportunity for advisors serving the self-employed market,” said Moore. “For us, it's a foot in the door, and I think it's kind of the first of many innovations that we can bring to these partners as we expand our relationships and expand our product offering.”
Advisors will be charged a platform fee based on their assets under management to offer Betterment’s solo 401(k) without any setup fee. The all-digital product from Betterment aims to simplify a category that has historically been filled with paperwork for advisors.
“The Solo 401(K) space represents a meaningful opportunity for advisors serving freelancers, sole proprietors, and self-employed clients,” Henoch Tezera, Osaic’s VP, employer plan consulting, told InvestmentNews. “Under the 2026 IRS limits, the maximum employee salary deferral is $24,500, with catch-up contributions still available for participants age 50 and older. Having a differentiated, easy-to-implement option strengthens what our advisors can bring to that conversation.”
Betterment serves more than one million customers spanning over $65 billion in assets under management. The robo-advisor hopes its solo 401(k) expansion leads to deeper advisor relationships in the retirement plan space.
“It is a starting place to work with advisors on larger, multi-employee retirement plans, which we also offer through our national retirement partners,” said Moore.
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