Vanguard cuts fees

Vanguard Australia has announced another round of fee cuts.

The company said it would be lowering fees on a number of its most popular funds and exchanged traded funds (ETFs) on 1 July 2019.

It described the move as being in keeping with its long-term commitment to helping investors achieve their investment goals by delivering high-value investments.

The company’s announcement said the fee reductions included one of Vanguard’s largest funds, the Vanguard Australian Shares Index Fund, which currently manages more than $15 billion for Australian investors which would see a fee reduction of two basis points, to 0.16 per cent per annum.

The other funds benefitting from fee reductions included the Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield Index Fund fee which will also move lower to 0.35 per cent representing a reduction of three basis points, and the Vanguard Australian Government Bond Index Fund which would see the largest reduction of five basis points, moving to 0.24 per cent a year.

The Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (VAS) - currently the second largest ETF on the Australian share market – would see a reduction of four basis points with a revised management fee for the ETF of 0.10 pe cent per annum.

Vanguard’s announcement said that, in practical terms, this meant a $10,000 investment in the ETF will cost just $10 a year plus trading costs.

It said the latest fee cuts were in addition to two price drops implemented earlier this year for Vanguard’s US Total Market Shares Index ETF (VTS) and All-World ex-US Shares Index ETF (VEU).