What’s Behind the New Trump Child-Savings Accounts

This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.Earlier this year, Nicki Minaj asked her fans to “go out there and make some babies.” Sitting onstage at a D.C. auditorium, the rapper and recent MAGA convert wasn’t just talking about the wonders of parenthood—she was plugging President Trump’s new child-savings accounts.The 530A accounts, better known by their other official name, Trump Accounts, are set to launch on July 4. Much like existing child-savings accounts, these are essentially tax-advantaged investment vehicles. During tax season, any parents of kids up to 18 years old can open a Trump Account on behalf of their child, regardless of their income level; if the child was born in the years 2025 to 2028, they can also receive $1,000 in their account automatically, straight from the federal government. The money can be invested only in American companies, and parents are the account’s custodians until their child turns 18. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, more than 5 million children have already been enrolled in the program this year.Trump Accounts have attracted wealthy backers from the private sector, who have agreed to supplement the accounts by offering additional money to qualifying kids. The tech billionaires Michael and Susan Dell are donating $6.25 billion to the program, which will put $250 into the accounts of certain children across the country who are too old to get the $1,000. Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, is donating $75 million for a similar initiative in Connecticut, which can go to kids who do qualify for the $1,000, and Altimeter Capital CEO Brad Gerstner has said he’s planning on doing something comparable in Indiana. (Minaj also pledged to donate between up to $300,000 exclusively for her fans, but she hasn’t clarified how that might work.) Whatever amount you