To Veterans and Principals

VANGUARD IN THE NEWS

Hi, all, Here are some more press clippings that highlight Vanguard.

1. “Years after surgery, a heartfelt reunion,” Philadelphia Inquirer, February 22, 2017. Thomas Jefferson University hosted a wonderful panel discussion with the two surgeons who performed my heart transplant way back in 1996, Dr. Rohinton Morris and Dr. Louis Samuels. They joined me and Jefferson CEO Stephen Klasko for a discussion on the 21st anniversary of my heart transplant. A standing room only crowd attended the seminar, moderated by students and focused on my transplant experiences and the similar challenges facing investment management and health care.

2. “Jack Bogle doesn’t feel ‘super confident’ about the market rally—here’s why,” CNBC, February 21, 2017. Just before the panel at Jefferson, my interview on CNBC was broadcast live to the audience. In the interview, I talked about the potential strength of the recent market rally, my outlook for stocks over the long term, and my “heart birthday.”

3. “A lesson in investing simplicity: Why the Bogle Model beats the Yale Model,” MarketWatch, February 7, 2017. I am a great admirer of David Swensen, who runs Yale’s highly successful endowment and is the pioneer of “The Yale Model,” which calls for large allocations to illiquid and alternative assets for investors with very long-term time horizons like university endowments. Nonetheless, I read with great delight this article comparing a simple three-index-fund portfolio, dubbed “The Bogle Model,” to the average endowment. Not only did the index funds beat the average endowment and even the top quartile endowments over 3, 5, and 10 years, it even beat the very best—top decile endowments—over 10 years (losing by only a whisker over 3 and 5 years). What a great endorsement of the power of simplicity over complexity—even for some of the world’s most sophisticated investors.

4. “John Bogle: Demise of fiduciary rule would be ‘step backward’ for nation,” InvestmentNews, February 9, 2017. InvestmentNews ran this summary of my recent New York Times op-ed about the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule. In the op-ed, I referenced a consulting firm’s estimate that Wall Street would lose $20 billion through 2020 as a result of DOL’s rule, which I pointed out the overlooked fact that the $20 billion would go to Main Street investors. I added, “By any definition, that’s a social good.”

5. “The Granddaddy of Indexing,” The Globe and Mail, January 25, 2017. This interview touches on the history of indexing, the current investment environment, and Warren Buffett’s endorsement of indexing, among other topics. But I’m not sure how I feel about the headline—if I’m the “granddaddy of indexing,” who is the father?

6. “The man who transformed investing for Main Street sees a bleak future for Wall Street’s money managers,” Business Insider, January 24, 2017. This extensive interview with journalist Rachel Levy covers a wide range of topics. My conclusion about the asset management business: “We’re paying people to beat the market when they aren’t doing it, and when you think about it, that doesn’t make sense.”

7. “A Love Letter to Jack Bogle,” The Motley Fool, January 8, 2017. I always enjoy spending time with the gregarious Gardner brothers from The Motley Fool. This article is a transcript of a podcast I recorded in December with David. He generously said, “I don’t think anybody … can touch the influence that Jack Bogle has wielded over the investment world. It’s not just that he’s always been a reformer. [It’s] that he’s always tirelessly worked for the common man and for uncommonly good returns for the common man. . . . He’s really democratized investing through the index fund.” Thanks David!

Best,
Jack
John C. Bogle
March 1, 2017