John Bogle on Investing - (Wiley Investment Classics) by John C Bogle (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

John Bogle on Investing is a compilation of the best speeches ever delivered by one of the 20th century's towering financial giants. Individually, each of these speeches delivers a powerful lesson in investing; taken together, Bogle's lifelong themes ring loud and clear. His investing philosophy has remained more or less constant throughout his illustrious career, and this book lays it out so you can learn from the very best. You'll learn what makes a successful investment strategy, consider the productive economics of long-term investing, and how emotional investment in financial markets is often counterproductive enough to forfeit success. Bogle discusses the "fiscal drag" of investing, and shows you how to cut down on sales charges, management fees, turnover costs, and opportunity costs, as he unravels a lifetime's worth of expertise to give you deep insight into the mind of a master at work.

John C. Bogle founded Vanguard in 1974, then in the space of a few years, introduced the index mutual fund, pioneered the no-load mutual fund, and redefined bond fund management. This book wraps up the essence of his half-century of knowledge to deepen your understanding and enhance your investment success.

• Learn why simple strategies are best
• Discover how emotions can ruin the best investment plan
• Examine the universality of indexing in the financial markets
• Minimize the costs -- financial and otherwise -- associated with investing

John Bogle is still in there fighting, still pushing the industry onward and upward. Take this rare opportunity to have industry-shaping expertise at your fingertips with John Bogle on Investing.

From the Back Cover

John C. Bogle is the investment visionary who founded the Vanguard Group. In this candid book, he reveals his insights on finance, economics, mutual funds, stewardship, and idealism. John Bogle on Investing: The First 50 Years includes his essays spanning the first 50 years of his legendary career, beginning with his landmark Princeton University senior thesis, "The Economic Role of the Investment Company." This thesis ultimately established Bogle's guiding principles for successful investing.

Bogle founded Vanguard to minimize the profound conflicts of interest in the traditional structure of the mutual fund industry, the resulting high costs, and the devastating effects the costs have--eroding the long-term returns earned by investors. Under Bogle's leadership, Vanguard developed a unique ownership structure that minimized conflicts of interest, a singular investment philosophy, and an enlightened approach to human values. Bogle, a maverick who is frequently regarded as a heretic in the mutual fund world, became a trusted leader known as "St. Jack" to millions of investors.

In his own words, Bogle explores past trends and future developments driving the fund industry and reveals the most effective means of building wealth over the long term. He outlines the four elements for developing an ideal investment program and explains how to reap the benefits of the powerful magic of long-term compounding of investment returns, all the while minimizing the devastating tyranny of compounding costs. He explains how the unique corporate structure he designed for Vanguard in 1974 put the focus on low costs and service to clients. His creation of the world's first index mutual fund in 1975 was critical to that story; and in 1977, he revolutionized the use of "no-load" mutual funds and redefined the structure of bond funds.

John Bogle on Investing represents the highest manifestation of Bogle's idealism--his long-standing view that the central principle of the mutual fund business should be not the marketing of financial products to customers, but the stewardship of investment services for clients. First published in 2001, in 2015 it is well on its way to becoming a classic.

Review Quotes

"Throughout the book Bogle elaborates on what he considers his most important contribution to the investing community: "the majesty of simplicity in an empire of parsimony." I can't think of a better legacy." - Investing.com

"Mr Bogle is also a noted proponent of index funds and everyone should read, mark, learn and inwardly digest his arguments." (Financial Advisor, October 2015)

About the Author

JOHN C. BOGLE is founder and former chairman of the Vanguard Group of mutual funds and President of its Bogle Financial Markets Research Center. After creating Vanguard in 1974, he served as chairman and chief executive officer until 1996 and senior chairman until 2000. Bogle is the author of ten books including Enough.: True Measures of Money, Business, and Life, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, and The Clash of the Cultures: Investment vs. Speculation, all published by Wiley.