Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund Institutional Shares (VSGIX) is an index mutual fund that employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the CRSP US Small Cap Growth Index, a broadly diversified index measuring the investment return of small-capitalization growth stocks publicly traded in the United States. The fund invests all or substantially all of its assets in the stocks comprising the index, holding each in approximately the same proportion as its weighting within the index; it offers exposure to approximately 600 small-cap growth stocks, primarily in sectors such as technology (27% allocation), healthcare, industrials, financial services, and communication services, with no single holding exceeding 2% of assets and the top 10 typically under 10%. The fund maintains a low expense ratio of 0.06%, annual turnover of 21%, and requires a minimum initial investment of $5 million for institutional investors.
Offered by The Vanguard Group, Inc., founded in 1975 and headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, the fund operates within the U.S. small growth equity segment, targeting institutional and high-net-worth investors seeking market-cap-weighted exposure to faster-growing small companies, which may include some mid-cap stocks to temper volatility.
Launched on May 24, 2000, VSGIX benefits from Vanguard's client-owned structure and global operations serving over 50 million investors across North America, Europe, Asia, and other regions.
In early 2025, Vanguard implemented its largest fee reductions in history across 168 share classes in 87 funds, estimated to save investors over $350 million annually and lowering the firm's average expense ratio to 0.07%, reinforcing cost leadership in index strategies like VSGIX; the parent firm also adjusted portfolio manager teams in June 2025 across 44 stock index funds including small-cap offerings for operational efficiency, added Aaron Choi and Kenny Narzikul as co-managers effective February 2025 alongside Gerard O’Reilly, and established a dedicated advice and wealth management division amid robust asset inflows rivaling BlackRock.