Valley Forge, Pa. - Vanguard Group founder and investing pioneer John C. Bogle has died at age 89, according to the company. He passed away in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, where he had lived.

Well known as Jack Bogle, he simplified investing for the masses by introducing the first index mutual fund for individual investors in 1976. Vanguard also shook up the industry by ending the company's reliance on outside brokers by directly marketing its funds to investors without charging upfront fees known as sales loads.

"Jack Bogle made an impact on not only the entire investment industry, but more importantly, on the lives of countless individuals saving for their futures or their children's futures," said Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley in a statement. "He was a tremendously intelligent, driven, and talented visionary whose ideas completely changed the way we invest. We are honored to continue his legacy of giving every investor 'a fair shake.'"

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Bogle served as Vanguard's chairman and CEO from its 1974 founding until 1996. He stepped down as senior chairman of the Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, firm in 2000, but he remained a vocal critic of the fund industry and Wall Street, writing books, delivering speeches and running a markets think tank that bears his name.