Vanguard Appoints ex-BlackRock ETF Chief as CEO

Vanguard has appointed its first outsider, Salim Ramji, as its new CEO and member of the Board.

Ramji replaces Tim Buckley, who announced in March that he planned to retire after six years of helming the CEO position.

With over 25 years of experience in investments, capital markets and wealth management, Ramji's latest claim to fame was leading Blackrock's ETF products.

During his time at BlackRock, Ramji headed corporate strategy and led BlackRock's iShares and oversaw the launch of its first Bitcoin ETF. He also built a voting choice platform to democratize client access to the proxy voting process.

Prior to that, Ramji served as the Head of U.S. Wealth Advisory and began his BlackRock career as the Global Head of Corporate Strategy.

Effective 8 July 2024, Ramji will step into the shoes of the CEO of Vanguard, which is the world's second-largest money manager, behind BlackRock.

Ramji was also a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company in charge of the firm's Asset & Wealth Management Practice after beginning his career as a lawyer at Clifford Chance in London and Hong Kong.

BlackRock congratulated Ramji on his appointment at Vanguard, saying it was “proud to have a track record of our firm’s alumni going on to lead multiple investment management companies and financial institutions.”

Ramji said it was an "honor" to join Vanguard, which he described as an institution that he has "long admired and respected."

"I am drawn to Vanguard because of the firm's clarity and consistency of purpose and am very excited to get to work and partner with the outstanding leadership team to lead the company into the future," he said."

"The current investor landscape is changing, and that presents opportunities for Vanguard to further its mission of giving people the best chance for investment success, which is more relevant today than at any time in the firm's five-decade history. My focus will be to mobilize Vanguard to meet the moment while staying true to that core purpose – remaining the trusted firm that takes a stand for all investors."