Inside Salim Ramji’s vision: Revisit the keynote session

This year’s Morningstar Investment Conference in Chicago featured an exciting lineup of keynote speakers, including our very own CEO, Salim Ramji. Salim joined Morningstar’s Ben Johnson on the stage to talk about Vanguard’s 50 years in the business, from how we’ve remained true to our roots to what might lie ahead for us in the future.

Here’s a look at what Salim discussed:

The Vanguard Effect, beyond just low fees

Salim spotlighted fixed income as our next frontier of disruption, affirming that 100% of Vanguard’s active bond funds are in the lowest cost decile of their peer groups,¹ and 91% have outperformed their peer groups over the last decade.²

“The industry has been taught that you need to pay a higher fee to outperform, and we are proving that is not true. Clients need fixed income right now, but they’re paying too much for it. It’s an area in the marketplace where clients deserve better.”

Making advice more accessible

Salim discussed the current state of the industry having a surplus of demand for advice and a scarcity of supply—especially for those outside the high-net-worth bracket. Vanguard aspires to change that and make advice accessible to broader parts of the population.

“That’s where technology comes in, that’s where AI comes in. We have a digital advice capability with low fees and low entry points, and AI-driven tools to scale access without sacrificing quality.”

Innovation, the Vanguard way

To close out the session, Salim was asked how Vanguard approaches innovation while remaining true to our core principles. His response?

“The fundamental question we ask is, ‘Is it good for clients?’ When we innovate, we do it purposely, methodically, and always the Vanguard way.”

Check out more highlights from the event in the video below.

Legal notices

All investing is subject to risk, including possible loss of principal.

For more information about Vanguard funds, visit vanguard.com to obtain a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus. Investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, and other important information are contained in the prospectus; read and consider it carefully before investing.

Bond funds are subject to interest rate risk, which is the chance bond prices overall will decline because of rising interest rates, and credit risk, which is the chance a bond issuer will fail to pay interest and principal in a timely manner or that negative perceptions of the issuer's ability to make such payments will cause the price of that bond to decline.

Vanguard's advice services are provided by Vanguard Advisers, Inc., a registered investment advisor, or by Vanguard National Trust Company, a federally chartered, limited-purpose trust company. 

1 All competitor fund data sourced from Morningstar Direct as of November 2024. The combination of Morningstar category, investment type, and management style defines Vanguard's category. Lowest decile expense ratios are calculated excluding Vanguard funds. Vanguard's updated expense ratios (effective February 1, 2025) were compared to the lowest decile expense ratios in each category. Summing all active fixed income funds that were less than or equal to the lowest decile expense ratio and dividing by total active fixed income funds resulted in 100% of funds in the lowest cost decile.

2 For the 10-year period ended March 31, 2025, 42 of 46 Vanguard active bond funds outperformed their peer group averages; results will vary for other time periods. Only funds with a minimum 10-year history were included in the comparison (source: LSEG Lipper). Note that the competitive performance data shown represent past performance, which is not a guarantee of future results, and that all investments are subject to risks. For the most recent performance, visit our website at advisors.vanguard.com/investments/all.