James E. Stowers Jr., the founder of American Century Investments, has died, the company announced Tuesday.
Mr. Stowers, 90, died Monday from natural causes. He founded money management firm Twentieth Century Mutual Funds in 1958 with $100,000 in seed money from 24 investors. The firm's name changed to American Century Investments in 2000 and now has $141 billion in assets under management.
Mr. Stowers was also the co-founder with his wife, Virginia, of the Stowers Institute for Medical Research in 1994, following their respective battles with cancer.
“Jim Stowers was a pioneer in the worlds of investment management and personal philanthropy, and the entire American Century Investments family mourns his loss,” said Jonathan S. Thomas, American Century's president and CEO, in a news release. “He was an unpretentious man of great vision, an investment innovator with a driving passion for helping investors achieve financial success.”
Mr. Stowers' family requests contributions in the form of “Hope Shares” accounts at the Stowers Institute. More information is available on the institute's website.