New Vanguard CEO: "We will not be launching crypto ETFs."

The Vanguard Group, the second-largest issuer of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), plans to sit out the cryptocurrency ETF gold rush, according to Salim Ramji, Vanguard's CEO.

“We will not be launching crypto ETFs,” Ramji said in an Aug. 14 interview with ETF.com.

With almost $2.7 trillion in assets under management (AUM), Vanguard is the world’s second-largest ETF sponsor after Blackrock, according to data from stockanalysis.com. Ramji, a former Blackrock executive, was named Vanguard’s CEO on May 14, replacing former chief Tim Buckley.

“I’m not going to copy competitors. It’s important that a company stay consistent with who they are,” Ramji said.

Related: Crypto ETFs will expand to new asset types, indexes — Grayscale executive

Vanguard’s absence is notable amid a flurry of crypto ETF listings by leading ETF sponsors, including Blackrock. In January, Blackrock launched iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), followed by iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) in July. The funds now command approximately $21 billion and $800 million in AUM, respectively, according to Morningstar.

Bitcoin ETFs saw record-breaking inflows in 2024 . The funds saw “more than three times the largest one-year inflow of any ETF ever in the history of ETFs,” Dave LaValle, asset manager Grayscale’s global head of ETFs, said on Aug. 12. “So we’re talking about massive, massive adoption.”

The adoption of crypto ETFs by established wealth managers such as Morgan Stanley has legitimized the asset class for investment managers and expanded its potential reach.

“A lot of huge investors, like sovereign wealth funds and pension funds, are poised to invest in ETFs,” Katalin Tischhauser, head of investment research at crypto bank Sygnum, told Cointelegraph. “Crypto will eventually become a part of model portfolios, with products tailored to different risk profiles.”

Vanguard plans to differentiate itself by focusing on products designed to protect investors from downside risks.

“We have been very focused on helping clients accumulate assets, but the industry hasn’t done much to help on drawdowns,” Ramji said. “I want to focus on new products like retirement income and other drawdown strategies with a range of tools and advice.”

Magazine: How crypto bots are ruining crypto — including auto memecoin rug pulls