The roughly $10 trillion asset manager, once one of crypto’s loudest institutional skeptics, is building a digital assets team for the first time.
Posted July 8, 2026 at 6:07 am EST.
Vanguard, the roughly $10 trillion asset manager that spent years as one of crypto’s most prominent institutional skeptics, has opened a search for its first-ever head of digital assets. The role, posted Monday within Vanguard’s Personal Wealth division, signals a broader reassessment of a sector the firm long avoided.
According to the job listing, the executive will lead Vanguard’s digital assets strategy, roadmap, and enterprise execution, and serve as its senior subject matter expert on tokenization, stablecoins, custody models, and blockchain-based settlement. The hire would also represent Vanguard in discussions with regulators and industry groups and help shape the firm’s long-term posture.
This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.
Subscribe here to get these updates in your email for free
The search offers an additional indication that Vanguard is softening its stance on crypto. It comes after the company late last year started allowing brokerage clients to trade crypto ETFs. It initially blocked spot Bitcoin ETFs from its brokerage platform when they launched in January 2024, as its executives repeatedly characterized crypto as inconsistent with a long-term investment philosophy.
While Vanguard has stayed on the sidelines, rivals have dived in. BlackRock, Fidelity, and Franklin Templeton all rolled out spot Bitcoin ETFs after the SEC approved them in 2024.
The recent shifts follow the appointment of Salim Ramji as Vanguard CEO in July 2024. Before joining Vanguard, Ramji ran BlackRock’s iShares unit, where he helped launch the iShares Bitcoin Trust, the largest spot Bitcoin ETF.
Related Listen: Why You No Longer Have to Choose Between TradFi and Crypto
AI-assisted content: This article was produced with the assistance of AI tools and was reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by a member of the Unchained editorial team before publication.
Business,digital assets,Salim Ramji,vanguard,yahoodigital assets,Salim Ramji,vanguard,yahoo#Vanguard #Hiring #Digital #Assets #Signaling #Shift #CryptoSkeptic1783510413
