Vanguard Marks 50th Anniversary of Vanguard 500 Index Fund
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the launch of what became the Vanguard 500 Index Fund, a milestone in low-cost index investing. The fund was originally known as First Index Investment Trust and launched on August 31, 1976 with $11.3 million—far below its target—and aimed to track the S&P 500 Index. Over time, indexing has become one of the most widely accepted investment strategies globally. Vanguard founder John C. Bogle introduced a concept that challenged traditional active investing by emphasizing low costs and long-term diversification. A $10,000 investment in this fund at its launch would have grown to over $2.4 million as of July 31, 2026. The success of indexing has driven down fees across the industry, with Vanguard estimating that index investing saved investors about $570 billion in fees since 2000. The anniversary highlights how indexing helped democratize access to long-term wealth-building strategies and became a core component for retirement plans and other investment vehicles. Vanguard expanded its offerings beyond U.S. large-cap stocks, introducing funds covering bonds, international equities, emerging markets, mid- and small-cap stocks.
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Topics: indexing long-term wealth low-cost investing Vanguard