Office address: 100 Vanguard Blvd Valley Forge, PA 19482
Website: www.vanguard.com
Year established: 1975
Company type: investment advisor firm
Employees: 20,000+
Expertise: mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, asset management, sub-advisory services, finance, investment management, technology, IT, healthcare, employee wellness, sustainability, ESG, human resources, talent management
Parent company: N/A
Key people: Salim Ramji (CEO), Greg Davis (president), Matthew Benchener (MD), Joseph Brennan (CRO), Lauren Valente (CHRO), Michael Rollings (CFO), Nitin Tandon (CIO)
Financing status: N/A
The Vanguard Group, based in Pennsylvania, offers investments, advice, and retirement services to over 50 million investors. Owned by its member funds and their shareholders, Vanguard serves individual investors, institutions, and financial professionals worldwide. With over 20,000 employees and $9.3 trillion in assets as of May 2024, the company operates globally, providing a broad range of financial services.
The Vanguard Group was founded in 1975 by John C. Bogle to create an investor-owned mutual fund company focused on long-term value. Their origins go back to the Wellington Fund, launched in 1929 by Wellington Management, which later became part of Vanguard. In 1976, Vanguard introduced the first index mutual fund, revolutionizing low-cost investing.
The company expanded in the 1990s, opening offices in Arizona and North Carolina, and its first international office in Australia in 1996. In 2001, the firm launched ETFs, offering affordable access to index funds, and in 2015 introduced Personal Advisor Services for tailored advice. The Vanguard Group joined the World Economic Forum's Global Parity Alliance to advance DEI in 2022 and appointed their first outsider CEO in 2024. (Vanguard was previously known for promoting from within its ranks.)
Vanguard offers a wide range of investment products and services designed to meet the diverse needs of its clients. Key offerings include:
The Vanguard Group’s mission is to provide low-cost, client-focused products that support long-term financial goals. From advice to investments, the company emphasizes clear insights and a commitment to helping clients succeed.
The Vanguard Group fosters a culture of participation, inclusion, and innovation, where diverse teams thrive and new ideas are encouraged. The company offers opportunities for professional development and recognizes individual contributions.
Vanguard supports long-term employee success with a comprehensive rewards package that includes these benefits:
The company’s sustainability efforts include reducing its carbon footprint and managing climate-related risks through a comprehensive strategy. It aims to minimize its environmental impact by reducing emissions, electricity and water usage, and diverting waste from landfills by 2025. The Vanguard Group also engages its employees in these efforts and pursues sustainable business practices:
The Vanguard Group is committed to creating an inclusive workplace where employees can thrive and contribute. The company has expanded its DEI efforts with stronger processes and accountability. Vanguard also promotes equity within its community, supply chain, and client services through:
Vanguard focuses on supporting the communities where its employees and clients live, prioritizing early childhood development and financial well-being. The company works with nonprofit and corporate leaders to address key community needs. Their philanthropic efforts reflect its long-term mission to create lasting, positive impacts.
Salim Ramji was appointed CEO of Vanguard in 2024. He has held leadership roles throughout his 25 years of experience, including:
Ramji holds a BA in economics and politics from the University of Toronto and an MA in law from the University of Cambridge.
These are some of the key leaders overseeing The Vanguard Group divisions and their specific responsibilities:
The Vanguard Group is expanding its fixed-income offerings by introducing two new actively managed municipal bond ETFs, focusing on tax-exempt investments. These funds aim to offer low-cost, diversified exposure to high-quality municipal bonds, appealing to investors seeking stability and long-term growth. This move strengthens Vanguard's position in the fixed-income ETF market, complementing its existing lineup of municipal bond products.
Vanguard Charitable recently achieved a major milestone in its support for nonprofit organizations since its founding in 1997. This achievement highlights the growing role of donor-advised funds, which help donors support charitable causes over time. By facilitating philanthropy, The Vanguard Group continues to advance its mission of maximizing donors' impact and expanding its influence in the charitable sector.
Fidelity Investments experienced outflows in its long-term mutual funds in October — the first time the fund behemoth has seen net outflows in months.
Assets in the exchange-traded fund industry totaled about $689 billion as of Oct. 30, down 0.8%, or $5.3 billion, from a month earlier, according to a report last week from State Street Global Advisors.
Exchange-traded-fund providers in the coming year will have to focus on making sure financial advisers understand their products — and how to use them in client portfolios — as they anticipate increased scrutiny from regulators and the media, according to participants at an ETF round table last week at <i>InvestmentNews'</i> New York offices.
More than twice the number of target date funds have liquidated this year than in all of 2008, indicating how difficult it is for asset managers unaffiliated with 401(k) record keepers to build assets in such funds.
Exchange-traded-fund providers in the coming year will have to focus on making sure financial advisers understand their products — and how to use them in client portfolios — as they anticipate increased scrutiny from regulators and the media, according to participants in today's ETF round table at InvestmentNews' New York offices.
The love affair financial advisers have enjoyed with American Funds has cooled.
There have already been more than three times the number of target date fund liquidations so far this year than there were in all of 2008. Moreover, experts predict that trend to increase as smaller fund managers are finding it nearly impossible to gain traction in the market.
Cash flowing into mutual funds — particularly bond funds — at a record pace is a welcome turn of events for the fund industry, but it could end up hurting fund companies to the extent that flows are the result of investors' chasing returns.
While the third quarter proved to be a big comeback month for inflows into open-ended mutual funds overall, one mutual fund behemoth continued to bleed assets, according to a report today from Morningstar Inc.
The Vanguard Group Inc., the retirement plan provider and investment manager, says CEO F. William McNabb III will take on the role of board chairman in January.
Law enforcement uses behavioral profiling to identify terrorists, and now mutual fund companies are starting to apply the methodology to financial advisers to target sales and marketing efforts more effectively.
Exchange-traded-fund assets reached an all-time high of $695 billion at the end of last month, according to data released today by State Street Global Advisors.
Managed-payout funds designed to give retirees a steady stream of income landed with a thud when they were introduced ahead of the stock market's swoon, but some mutual fund companies are seeking to breathe new life into the concept.
