Products June 24, 2010

Vanguard to Expand Index Offerings

Vanguard announced plans to expand its index fund family, introducing 19 new funds with ETF Shares to provide investors with additional low-cost stock and bond choices.

Reported by

The firm will also launch ETF Shares of its flagship Vanguard 500 Index Fund.  

Over the next year, these new funds and 20 new ETFs will broaden the firm’s equity lineup with core funds tracking benchmarks from a wider range of providers; add indexed municipal products to Vanguard’s fixed income stable; and present investors with the option of an international real estate fund and ETF, according to the announcement.  

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On the equity side, Vanguard is adding a suite of seven funds with ETF Shares to offer exposure to value, growth, and blend segments of the U.S. stock market based on the large cap Russell 1000 Index and small cap Russell 2000 index series. A broad market fund and ETF seeking to track the Russell 3000 Index will also be offered.   

In addition, Vanguard will complete its S&P lineup with eight new equity funds and ETFs targeting the growth and value segments of the S&P 500 Index and the growth, value, and blend segments of the S&P MidCap 400 and SmallCap 600 Indexes.

On the bond side, Vanguard will offer three new municipal bond index funds with traditional and exchange-traded shares, tracking benchmarks in the S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index series.

The new real estate fund will be benchmarked to the S&P Global ex-U.S. Property Index. Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate Index Fund will offer Investor Shares, Institutional Shares, Signal Shares, and ETF Shares.

Vanguard has filed registration statements for the 19 new funds and ETFs with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Products June 24, 2010

CFP Launches New Designation for Financial Advisors

The College for Financial Planning announced today the availability of a new designation for financial advisers.  
Reported by

According to the announcement, the Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor or AMPA, is an education program for financial advisors who are interested in investment management theory, security valuation, and overall portfolio design and management. 

The program’s core curriculum was designed with help from Ameriprise Financial to educate their financial advisors in portfolio management, and will be open to financial professionals nationwide starting July 1.  

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Students must complete a two-part program to earn the AMPA designation. The first, a self-study or six-week online instructor-led Mentor classroom program, focuses on core concepts. The second is a four-week online classroom that teaches direct application of those core concepts, including the construction of a class-managed portfolio based on real-time market data. Program graduates will also receive credit for one of the courses in the College’s CFP Certification Education Program, and three hours of graduate degree credit in the College’s Master of Science degree program.  

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