The Vanguard Group has enhanced the usability of its award-winning website, Vanguard.com, by providing individual shareholders and participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans with immediate access to account information online - without sacrificing the security for which the site has become known. This new capability is complemented by the integration of an online investment center for retirement plan participants and two interactive tools to help investors make sound decisions during significant life events, such as job changes.
``Vanguard strives to provide its clients with unmatchable value in all aspects of client service and education,'' said Tim Buckley, a Principal in Vanguard's Web Services division. ``The enhancements to Vanguard.com offer shareholders instant access to their account information, allowing them to manage all of their Vanguard assets -- whether held directly or in an employer-sponsored plan -- through a single site, and providing educational information to help them become more knowledgeable investors.''
Vanguard.com's homepage features easy-to-identify tabs and a user-friendly layout that includes a new index of the site's content. From the homepage, shareholders can experience the newly added capabilities, including:
Simplified Account Activation and Log On allows shareholders to obtain immediate access to their account information. (Previously, the online registration process required waiting for a password in the mail.) To maintain account security, Vanguard delays access to certain online transactions for seven calendar days to allow the company to confirm the account registration. Once the account is confirmed, shareholders can conduct nearly all transactions online, including opening a new fund account, buying shares for an existing account, and selling shares via secure electronic transfer between Vanguard and their bank. They may also place orders to buy and sell stocks, options, and some 3,000 non-Vanguard mutual funds, and view or download statements, fund reports, and fund prospectuses. Another key ease-of-use feature enables clients with 40-bit encryption browsers to establish a more secure 128-bit session to gain immediate access to the secure areas of the site. Previously, Vanguard shareholders had to upgrade their browsers to take advantage of the highest level of security.
Your Employer Plan integrates Vanguard's current Participant Online(TM) platform (a separate online account access service utilized by many employer retirement plans) into Vanguard.com, allowing employer-sponsored retirement plan participants to manage their plan and personal assets through a single site. In addition, plan participants can view their statements online and, with plan sponsor approval, elect to stop receiving printed statements via mail. A new homepage tab, "Your Employer Plan", provides easy identification and a quick link to participant account information.
Lifetime Events "Changing Jobs" offers access to the first in a series of Vanguard's acclaimed Life Passages® educational programs to be delivered online. "Changing Jobs" is designed to help investors through the process of evaluating retirement plan alternatives when they change jobs, and provides two interactive tools to help them take action on what they learn. The first tool helps job changers view the impact of a particular distribution option (rollover into an IRA, transfer assets into new employer's plan, leave assets in current plan, or take a cash distribution) and guides them through the distribution process step-by-step. Another tool demonstrates the tax implications of employer stock distributions based on an investor's tax rate, stock appreciation, time horizon, and other factors.
These added features complement a variety of educational materials and interactive advice tools investors can already use within Vanguard.com. A frequently visited area is the Vanguard University, where investors can find ten courses organized in a series of simple, one-page lessons with quizzes to help them gauge their progress. Another is the award-winning Online Planner, which helps users prepare complete financial plans and suggests specific funds for investing.
The Vanguard Group, headquartered in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is the nation's second largest mutual fund firm and a leading provider of company- sponsored retirement plan services. Vanguard serves 14 million shareholder accounts and manages more than $560 billion, including more than $170 billion in employer-sponsored retirement plans. Vanguard offers 109 funds to U.S. investors and 33 additional funds in international markets.
For more information, contact Brian S. Mattes, Principal, 610-669-6219, or John S. Woerth, Principal, 610-669-6224, or John E. Demming, Communications Manager, 610-669-5457, all of Vanguard.
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