Vanguard

The Vanguard Group, founded in 1975, with about $6.2 trillion in assets under management is the largest provider of mutual funds and second-largest provider of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). At it's core, Vanguards mission is to take a stand for all investors, to treat them fairly, and to give them the best chance for investment success. Vanguard has over 17,000 employees and ~$6.9 billion in revenue. Vanguard also offers brokerage services, variable and fixed annuities, educational account services, financial planning, asset management and trust services. Vanguard offers investor shares and admiral shares. The latter has slightly lower expense rations but have a minimum investment between $3,000 and $100,000 per fund. Along with Blackrock and State Street, Vanguard is considered as one of the Big Three index funds that are favored across corporate America. Vanguards oldest fund is the Wellington Fund with an inception date of July 1, 1929. Vanguard is improving it's advisor technology and working on virtual models and robo-advisors given the recent market trends. Vanguard competitors include Merrill Lynch, Franklin Resources, Fidelity Investments, Blackrock and TIAA.