What sets Vanguard apart – and lets Vanguard put investors first around the world – is the ownership structure of The Vanguard Group, Inc., in the United States.
Rather than being publicly traded or owned by a small group of individuals, The Vanguard Group is owned by Vanguard's U.S.-domiciled funds and ETFs. Those funds, in turn, are owned by their investors.
This mutual structure aligns our interests with those of our investors and drives the culture, philosophy and policies throughout the Vanguard organization worldwide.
In Australia, Vanguard leverages the scale, experience and resources of our established global business. Vanguard's ownership structure means that our clients don't have to worry that we'll be acquired. The company they invest with today will continue to serve them in the future.
The Vanguard Group, Inc.: Key facts and figures*
Founded |
1975 |
Total assets under management |
AUD $6.8 trillion |
Funds offered |
187 in the US, and 208 funds in markets outside the US |
Ownership |
Client-owned** |
Headquarters |
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, USA |
Chairman: |
F. William McNabb III |
CEO: |
Mortimer J. Buckley |
Number of employees |
Around 16,600 worldwide |
Investors can't control the markets, but they can control the costs of investing. Providing low-cost investments isn't a pricing strategy for us. It's how we do business.
We can keep costs low because of our unique ownership structure in the United States, which allows us to return profits to investors through lower costs.
Vanguard's scale also helps to keep costs low. As our assets under management increase, we can reduce expense ratios for the investors in our funds globally.
The ownership structure of our parent company, The Vanguard Group, Inc., aligns our interests with those of our clients. Because Vanguard is not publicly traded, we can extend the benefits of that structure to our clients in Australia.
From rigorous risk management to transparent pricing to plain talk communications, we put our clients' interests first.
Everything we do at Vanguard is designed to give our clients the best chance for investment success.