MSCI, a leading provider of U.S. equity, international equity, fixed income and hedge fund indices, announced today that The Vanguard Group has decided that they will adopt the MSCI US Broad Market Index as the target benchmark for index funds with assets totaling more than $60 billion (as of 12/31/04). This adoption will signify a marked increase in the total assets benchmarked to the MSCI US Equity Indices to more than $110 billion.
"Vanguard's pending adoption is a significant advancement in the growing market acceptance of the MSCI US Equity Indices," said Ken O'Keeffe, executive director at MSCI. "Currently, we have approximately $50 billion benchmarked to our U.S. indices from Vanguard and a growing number of institutional investors. Vanguard's move will more than double that number. Our benchmarks are built for professional users who demand indices that broadly and fairly reflect the U.S. equity market, yet are replicable and have low turnover."
Vanguard's Chief Investment Officer, Gus Sauter, explained, "We feel that MSCI's US Broad Market Index is a well-constructed index that will enhance our all-market index fund offerings. With the addition of this index, we will now offer 21 U.S. equity index funds tracking MSCI benchmarks."
The MSCI US Broad Market Index offers several advantages vs. competing total market indices including:
- The broadest market capitalization coverage of any total market index. MSCI includes certain U.S. companies that are domiciled outside of the U.S. such as Tyco International, Accenture LTD and Ingersoll-Rand in its US Equity Indices.
About the MSCI US Equity Indices
The MSCI US Equity Indices offer investors a state-of-the-art family of indices with the following benefits:
- The broadest market capitalization coverage of the U.S. equity market
- Value and growth indices defined using eight variables
- Index reviews four times per year
- Free float adjustment of index constituents
- Minimum free float screens
- A liquidity screen
- Minimum market capitalization screens
About MSCI
MSCI (www.msci.com) is a leading provider of equity, fixed income and hedge fund indices, and related products and services. MSCI estimates that over USD 3 trillion is benchmarked to its indices on a worldwide basis. MSCI is headquartered in New York, with research and commercial offices around the world. In 2004, MSCI acquired Barra, Inc. (www.barra.com), a global leader in delivering risk analytics, performance measurement and attribution systems and services to managers of portfolio and firm-wide investment risk. Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm and a market leader in securities, asset management, and credit services, is the majority shareholder of MSCI, and The Capital Group Companies, Inc., a global investment management group, is the minority shareholder.
For further information on MSCI indices or MSCI data, please visit our web site at www.msci.com or contact:
| Dorsey Horowitz, MSCI, New York | + 1 212 762 5790 | |
| Guillermo Benedit, MSCI, London | + 44 20 7425 6660 | |
| Jammy Chan, MSCI, Hong Kong | + 852 2848 6740 | |
| Olivia Vong, MSCI, Tokyo | + 813 5424 5470 | |
| PR: | ||
| Carla A. Schlemminger, MSCI, Berkeley, California | + 1 510 649 4615 | |
| Ben Curson/Clare Rowsell, Penrose Financial, London | + 44 20 7786 4888 | |
| Ed Rowley/Patrick Linehan, Abernathy MacGregor, New York | + 1 212 371 5999 | |
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