Ramji spent over 10 years as the world’s largest asset manager at BlackRock, where he was seen as one of several possible CEO Larry Fink’s successors.
Salim Ramji, a veteran of BlackRock Inc., was appointed by Vanguard Group Inc. to manage the company as chief executive officer. He took over from Tim Buckley and is the first non-insider to head the company known for changing investing through the use of index funds.
According to an email released on Tuesday, Ramji, who managed index investing and exchange-traded funds at BlackRock, will join Vanguard, one of its main competitors, in July. Founded by the late Jack Bogle about fifty years ago, Vanguard controlled around $9.3 trillion as of the end of March.
According to Ramji, “vanguard has opportunities to further its mission of giving people the best chance for investment success, which is more relevant today than at any other time in the firm’s five-decade history, as the current investor landscape is changing.” “My goal is to lead Vanguard to meet the needs of the current situation while adhering to our fundamental goal of being a reliable company that stands up for all investors.”
Vanguard declared in February that Buckley intended to step down by year’s end and that the board had started looking for his replacement. A veteran of three decades with Vanguard, he has been in the top position since 2018.
Before leaving in January, Ramji spent over 10 years working for BlackRock, the largest asset management firm in the world, in New York. He was seen as one of several possible CEO Larry Fink’s successors. Serving as the worldwide head of iShares and index investments, he played a key role in the company’s enormous growth and current $3.7 trillion ETF business management.
An email from a BlackRock representative said, “We thank Salim for his leadership at our firm and congratulate him on this accomplishment.” “BlackRock is pleased with the history of its alumni leading numerous financial institutions and investment management firms.”
With $10.5 trillion in assets, BlackRock and Vanguard are direct rivals in the quickly expanding ETF market; they are ranked first and second in US funds, respectively. Together with State Street Global Advisors, these businesses make up the “Big Three” of index investing, with significant holdings in nearly every S&P 500 company. Due to their increased market impact, asset managers have come under fire from lawmakers and regulators who are concerned about the way the managers use their position of authority.
The Bogle Reign
During his tenure as CEO of Vanguard, which began in 1975 and ended in 1995, Bogle saw potential for success and low costs in offering a fund that was linked to the whole stock market to a large consumer base. The index fund eventually caused many asset managers’ fees to plummet after it gained traction, revolutionizing contemporary investing. 2019 saw his 89th birthday.
Vanguard, which is headquartered more than 100 miles from Wall Street and outside of Philadelphia, has transformed investing by advocating for index funds and purposefully keeping costs low. Rather than being owned by external investors, the company is owned by its member funds, which are held by fund shareholders.
Vanguard has attempted branching out from its conventional core of index funds in recent years in an effort to attract new customers and serve as a kind of growth engine number two. This includes ventures into financial advisory services. The company still offers a few actively managed funds, but its presence in the quickly expanding private asset and private equity sectors is still limited.
Vanguard has endeavored to expand its low-cost investing mission to foreign markets by providing index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). However, it has made certain withdrawals, most notably from its operations in China.
