Article Originally Published: InvestmentNews
Vanguard is known worldwide for putting individual investors first and acting with integrity. This is why a recent SEC order against Vanguard is so damning.
On August 29, the SEC issued an order directing Vanguard to pay a $19.5 million penalty for failures to “adequately disclose conflicts of interest.”
The SEC reported how from August 2020 to December 2023, Vanguard claimed on its website that advisors were “salaried” and “have no financial incentives to recommend certain products.”
However, those advisors were incentivized to enroll Vanguard “clients” into their managed account program, “Personal Advisor Services,” according to the SEC. So for three years, Vanguard failed to tell clients the simple truth in plain language about PAS advisor compensation.
What the heck is this? This clear dishonesty hit me hard. I’ve invested with and have advocated for Vanguard for decades.
I believed Vanguard was different. Now, I’m not sure.
