Vanguard Spent Years Fighting Crypto, Now It’s Planning for It
Vanguard is hiring its first Head of Digital Assets to construct a multi-year crypto roadmap for Personal Wealth purchasers. The roughly $12 trillion asset supervisor nonetheless has no plans to launch its personal Bitcoin ETF.
The function appeared on Vanguard’s careers portal on July 6 underneath requisition 179858. It lists hybrid seats in Malvern, Dallas, Scottsdale, and Charlotte.
From Blocking Bitcoin ETFs to Hiring a Crypto Chief
The job description positions the rent as Vanguard’s senior material knowledgeable for digital belongings throughout Personal Wealth. The mandate spans merchandise, working fashions, danger, and engagement with regulators.
“The Head of Digital Assets will lead Vanguard Personal Wealth’s digital belongings technique, roadmap, and enterprise execution,” the supply stated.
The posting marks a pointy break from Vanguard’s earlier stance. The agency blocked spot Bitcoin ETFs from its brokerage platform after they launched in January 2024. Executives lengthy dismissed crypto as speculative.
In December 2025, nevertheless, Vanguard opened its platform to third-party crypto ETFs and mutual funds. The choice gave greater than 50 million brokerage purchasers entry to funds holding Bitcoin, Ethereum (ETH), XRP, and Solana (SOL).
The reversal got here underneath Salim Ramji, who grew to become Vanguard’s first externally employed CEO in July 2024. At BlackRock, he ran the iShares unit that launched the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). That fund alone held about $54 billion as of March 31, per an iShares reality sheet.
Why Vanguard Still Won’t Launch a Bitcoin ETF
Vanguard has by no means filed for a proprietary crypto ETF. The agency’s printed guidance favors belongings with clear money flows, and it presents crypto publicity solely via third-party merchandise, very like gold.
BlackRock and Fidelity, in distinction, run their very own spot Bitcoin funds. Competition amongst issuers has since fueled a Bitcoin ETF fee war that pushed expense ratios as little as 0.14%. Meanwhile, Schwab’s index fee cuts raised the price of standing nonetheless in conventional merchandise.
Client demand additionally stays measurable. US spot Bitcoin ETFs held $74.37 billion in internet belongings as of July 2. That day, Bitcoin ETF inflows returned with $221.72 million after a 10-day outflow streak. As of this writing, whole internet belongings stood at $77.32 billion.
Therefore, the brand new function appears broader than any single fund. A multi-year Personal Wealth roadmap may span custody, suggested portfolios, and tokenization across global finance quite than a product launch.
The open query is whether or not the roadmap stays exploratory or produces client-facing choices. The chief’s first strikes might present which method Vanguard leans.
The submit Vanguard Spent Years Fighting Crypto, Now It’s Planning for It appeared first on BeInCrypto.
