Vanguard CEO to Become Chairman on Jan. 1

The soon-to-be chairman joined Vanguard in 1991 as assistant to then-CEO John C. Bogle and became a principal in 1998. He also was chairman of the board of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia from 2011 to 2017.

As for McNabb, he joined Vanguard in 1986 and became CEO in mid-2008; he was elected chairman in December 2009. He has served as chairman and vice chairman of the Investment Company Institute and was previously a member of its board of governors.

"Bill's legacy is keeping our clients at the center of everything that we do and supporting the development of our crew," Buckley said in a statement. "Vanguard delivered unrivaled value under his leadership. He leaves our firm deep in talent and ready to give our clients the best chance of investment success."

In late September, Vanguard added to its environmental, social and governance fund offering with two new exchange traded funds: the Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF (ESGV), with an expense ratio of 0.12%, which seeks to track the FTSE U.S. All Cap Choice Index; and the Vanguard ESG International Stock ETF (VSGX), with an expense ratio of 0.15%, which targets the market-cap weighted, ESG-screened FTSE Global All Cap ex U.S. Choice Index.

— Check out Is the World Getting Better? Vanguard Ran the Numbers to Find Out on ThinkAdvisor.