For fifty years, Vanguard turned a strange ownership structure and a suspicion of fees into an investing machine for ordinary savers. Its next act mixes index discipline with advice, AI tools and private markets - without losing the low-cost bargain that made it matter.
Frec is a San Francisco fintech that brings direct indexing - a tax-optimization strategy long reserved for wealthy clients of private wealth managers - to everyday investors. Instead of buying an index fund, Frec customers own the underlying stocks of an index directly, which lets the platform automatically harvest tax losses, offset capital gains, and customize holdings, all for a 0.10% annual fee. Founded in 2021 by former Twitter and Instacart product leader Mo Al Adham and launched publicly in 2023, Frec also offers a portfolio line of credit, a high-yield treasury account, and tools to diversify concentrated stock positions.
Unlimited is a New York fintech that uses proprietary machine-learning technology to replicate the returns of hedge fund strategies inside low-cost, liquid ETFs. Founded in 2022 by former Bridgewater executive Bob Elliott, it aims to give everyday investors access to 2-and-20 style alternative strategies without the 2-and-20 fees, lockups, or opacity.