Drawing on years of experience, two financial experts warn investors of the potential financial hazards of mutual funds, discussing the hidden costs of such funds, providing realistic insights into how such funds operate, and offering helpful advice on how to protect one's investments.

Convinced that your star mutual fund manager will help you beat the market? Eager to hear the latest stock picking advice on CNBC? FORGET ABOUT IT! The Great Mutual Fund Trap shows that the average mutual fund consistently underperforms the market, and that strategies for picking above-average funds -- everything from past performance to expert rankings -- are useless. Picking individual stocks on the advice of brokers and analysts works no better. The only sure things are the fees and commissions you’ll pay. Fortunately, the news is not all bad. Investors willing to ignore the constant drumbeat of “trade frequently,” “trust the experts,” and “beat the market” now have the opportunity to do better. Using new investing products investors can earn higher returns with lower risks. Drawing on their years of Wall Street, Treasury and Federal Reserve experience, Gary Gensler and Gregory Baer offer a fresh and realistic look at how money is managed in America. From new indexing strategies to risk-managed stock selection, The Great Mutual Fund Trap offers investors an escape from high costs and immunity from seductive marketing messages.

Mutual funds form the bedrock of retirement savings in the United States, and, considering their rapid growth over recent decades, are sure to become even more financially critical in the coming decades. Because the size of fees paid by investors to mutual fund advisers can strongly affect the return on investment, these fees have become contentious in Congress and the courts, with many arguing that investment advisers grow rich at the expense of investors. This groundbreaking book not only conceptualizes a new economic model for the industry but uses this model to test price competition between investment advisers. Its highly experienced authors track the growth of the industry over the past twenty-five years and present the arguments and evidence both for and against theories of adviser malfeasance, as well as the assertion that market forces fail to protect investors' returns from excessive fees. The volume briefly reviews the regulatory history of mutual fund fees and leading case decisions addressing excessive fees. It also reveals the extent to which the governance structure of mutual funds impacts fund performance. There is no greater text for those who seek to understand today's mutual fund industry, including investors, money managers, fund directors, securities lawyers, economists, and those concerned with regulatory policy toward mutual funds

Investment Traps Exposed helps investors and investment practitioners increase their awareness about the external and internal traps that they or their clients can encounter.

Praise for Don't Count On It! "This collection of Jack Bogle's writings couldn't be more timely. The clarity of his thinking—and his insistence on the relevance of ethical standards—are totally relevant as we strive to rebuild a broken financial system. For too many years, his strong voice has been lost amid the cacophony of competing self-interests, misdirected complexity, and unbounded greed. Read, learn, and support Jack's mission to reform the industry that has been his life's work." —PAUL VOLCKER, Chairman of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board and former Chairman of the Federal Reserve (1979–1987) "Jack Bogle has given investors throughout the world more wisdom and plain financial 'horse sense' than any person in the history of markets. This compendium of his best writings, particularly his post-crisis guidance, is absolutely essential reading for investors and those who care about the future of our society." —ARTHUR LEVITT, former Chairman, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission "Jack Bogle is one of the most lucid men in finance." —NASSIM N.TALEB, PhD, author of The Black Swan "Jack Bogle is one of the financial wise men whose experience spans the post–World War II years. This book, encompassing his insights on financial behavior, pitfalls, and remedies, with a special focus on mutual funds, is an essential read. We can only benefit from his observations." —HENRY KAUFMAN, President, Henry Kaufman & Company, Inc. "It was not an easy sell. The joke at first was that only finance professors invested in Vanguard's original index fund. But what a triumph it has been. And what a focused and passionate drive it took: it is a zero-sum game and only costs are certain. Thank you, Jack." —JEREMY GRANTHAM, Cofounder and Chairman, GMO "On finance, Jack Bogle thinks unconventionally. So, this sound rebel turns out to be right most of the time. Meanwhile, many of us sometimes engage in self-deception. So, this book will set us straight. And in the last few pages, Jack writes, and I agree, that Peter Bernstein was a giant. So is Jack Bogle." —JEAN-MARIE EVEILLARD, Senior Adviser, First Eagle Investment Management Insights into investing and leadership from the founder of The Vanguard Group Throughout his legendary career, John Bogle-founder of the Vanguard mutual fund group and creator of the first index mutual fund-has helped investors build wealth the right way, while, at the same time, leading a tireless campaign to restore common sense to the investment world. A collection of essays based on speeches delivered to professional groups and college students in recent years, in Don't Count on It is organized around eight themes Illusion versus reality in investing Indexing to market returns Failures of capitalism The flawed structure of the mutual fund industry The spirit of entrepreneurship What is enough in business, and in life Advice to America's future leaders The unforgettable characters who have shaped his career Widely acclaimed for his role as the conscience of the mutual fund industry and a relentless advocate for individual investors, in Don't Count on It, Bogle continues to inspire, while pushing the mutual fund industry to measure up to their promise.

Empire of the Fund is an exposé of the way we save now with proposals to fix it. The United States has embarked upon the riskiest experiment in our financial history: to see whether millions of ordinary, untrained citizens can successfully manage trillions of dollars in a system dominated by skilled and powerful financial institutions.

H. Kent Baker and Vesa Puttonen show new investors how to avoid rash financial decisions and basic investing sins. They help them to recognize and avoid common investing mistakes, behavioral biases, and traps that can affect sound judgment and reduce wealth. Ultimately, they explain how to separate investment fads from time-tested principles.