Michael Dell pledges $6.25 billion to fund 25 million children’s Trump accounts

Michael and Susan Dell announced Tuesday that they have committed $6.25 billion to fund investment accounts for some 25 million American children.

The couple’s donation will be the largest ever to American children, according to Invest America, a nonprofit advocacy group partnering with the Dells.

“It is designed to help families feel supported from the start and encourage them to continue saving as their children grow up,” Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell Technologiestold CNBC in an interview. “We know that when kids have accounts like this, they are much more likely to graduate from high school, graduate from college, buy a home, start a business and less likely to be incarcerated.”

The Dells’ commitment goes hand in hand with a new federal government program that allows parents to open tax-advantaged investment accounts for children under 18 with a Social Security number. Under the federal program, U.S. citizens born between 2025 and 2028 will receive a $1,000 federal grant to fund these so-called Trump accounts. Parents will be able to open and contribute to these accounts starting July 4, 2026, with IRS guidance not yet released.

The Dells pledged to endow Trump accounts with $250 for children 10 and younger born before Jan. 1, 2025. According to Invest America, the promised funds will cover 25 million children 10 and younger in ZIP codes with a median income of $150,000 or less.

“We want to help kids who weren’t part of the government program,” Dell said.

Dell said he first became interested in creating investment accounts for children after hearing the idea from hedge fund manager Brad Gerstner around 2021. Gerstner, CEO of Altimeter Capital, later founded Invest America, which advocated for the program to be included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Trump accounts can only be used to invest in low-cost diversified funds that track a U.S. stock index. Gerstner said these accounts and grants give American children the opportunity to benefit from the growth of the U.S. stock market at an early age.

Gerstner said it would take more than the $250 from the Dells or the $1,000 in federal grants for the accounts to reach a substantial sum. However, Gerstner said start-up capital encourages parents to add their own funds.

He added that the legislation makes it much easier for businesses and philanthropists to make large-scale charitable contributions. Dell Technologies agreed to provide a grant equal to $1,000 from the U.S. Treasury deposited into the accounts of new employees’ children.

Parents simply need to open a Trump account to automatically receive a subsidy from Dell.

“It would have been impractical, if not impossible, to have such an impact on so many children without such a program,” Dell said.

There is little precedent for Dell’s commitment. The foundation of shoe billionaire Harold Alfond, who died in 2007, provides $500 scholarships to every child born in Maine.

Although Trump accounts are easy to set up, they lack some of the tax benefits of other accounts such as 529 accounts or Roth IRAs. Withdrawals are not allowed until the child turns 18, at which point the assets are rolled into an IRA and withdrawals are taxed.

Dell said he has spoken to other major philanthropists and is optimistic that others will also commit funds to these investment accounts.

“What we hope is that every child will see a future worth saving,” he said. “You think about the cumulative effect of a program like this in 10, 20, 30 years on millions of kids. That’s what excites us.”

Correction: This story has been updated to clarify where the money will come from when parents open a Trump account.