Office address: 50 Hudson Yards New York, NY 10001
Website: www.blackrock.com
Year established: 1988
Company type: investment company
Employees: 19,800+
Expertise: asset management, risk management, ETFs (iShares), fixed income, alternative investments, wealth management, retirement solutions, private equity, infrastructure, real estate, sustainable investing, financial technology
Parent company: N/A
Key people: Larry Fink (CEO), Rob Kapito (president), Joud Abdel Majeid (global head), Stephen Cohen (CPO), Ed Fishwick (CRO), Rob Goldstein (COO), Martin Small (CFO), Chris Meade (CLO)
Financing status: N/A
BlackRock is a global investment company from New York, offering asset management, advisory, and risk management services. The firm manages $11.5 trillion in assets as of October 2024 and operates in over 38 countries. With over 19,800 employees, the company serves clients in more than 100 countries, helping them achieve long-term financial well-being through innovative financial solutions.
BlackRock was founded in 1988 by Laurence Fink and seven partners, driven by a desire to manage assets with a focus on risk management and client interests. The company quickly grew, and in 1999, it launched Aladdin, its proprietary technology that transformed the risk management industry. During the 2008 financial crisis, the company was tapped by the Federal Reserve to assess Bear Stearns' assets, playing a crucial advisory role.
In 2009, it acquired Barclays Global Investors, becoming the world's largest asset manager and integrating both active and index strategies. In 2017, the company deepened its focus on investment stewardship, emphasizing the long-term value of purpose in profitability. By 2024, it partnered with Vestmark to boost model portfolios, further expanding its offerings for registered investment advisors.
BlackRock offers a wide range of investment products and services designed to meet the diverse needs of its clients. Below are the some of their key offerings:
BlackRock’s global team provides insights on markets, economies, and long-term strategies, helping clients navigate the complexities of investing. Whether it is a professional or a new investor, their services aim to support financial success while also empowering employees and giving back to communities.
BlackRock’s culture is built on a commitment to its clients, employees, and core principles. The company focuses on employee growth, offering benefits that support physical, emotional, and financial well-being. The firm provides various resources and benefits to keep employees engaged and balanced, some of which include:
The firm’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is central to its success, fostering an environment where employees feel a sense of belonging. The company’s global platform thrives by incorporating diverse perspectives to deliver the best outcomes for clients. By embracing unique skills and experiences, they empower employees to collaborate effectively and contribute to a shared mission:
The company’s social impact focuses on making financial prosperity accessible to more people and communities. The BlackRock Foundation supports low- to moderate-income households by helping them save, invest, and build wealth. Initiatives include:
BlackRock’s approach to corporate sustainability focuses on long-term value for shareholders, employees, communities, and clients. The company is committed to transparency, providing stakeholders with meaningful sustainability-related information.
Laurence Fink is company’s chairman, CEO, and founder, also serving on the boards of NYU and the World Economic Forum. Before founding BlackRock in 1988, he was a managing director at The First Boston Corporation. Fink earned a BA in political science and an MBA in real estate from UCLA.
The company’s key leadership team includes notable figures who lead the firm’s operations across global markets:
To prepare for potential market volatility, BlackRock advises financial professionals to reduce risk and shift toward safer investment options. With uncertainty ahead, particularly due to macroeconomic concerns and the upcoming elections, the firm highlights the importance of defensive strategies like the BlackRock Flexible Income ETF (BINC). This strategic adjustment also reflects their broader move toward active management, signaling its belief in a more hands-on approach during turbulent times.
The company recently reached an $11.5 trillion milestone in assets under management by the third quarter of 2024. This growth was driven by strong client inflows, notably into ETFs, fixed income, and private assets. BlackRock is accelerating its push into private assets, following acquisitions like Global Infrastructure Partners, and continues to lead in both public and private markets.
Larger financial institutions shedding their asset management business accounted for the bulk of mergers-and-acquisitions activities in the third quarter, a trend that will continue in the months ahead, according to a report today from the financial-institutions group of Jefferies & Co. Inc.
Three more large investment firms have raised sufficient capital to participate in the joint partnership with the government to purchase toxic assets from banks.
The performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average —up 12% for all of 2009—and other broad market indicators, are evidence that the recession is over and normalcy is returning to both the stock market and the economy, according to some industry experts.
Managing client expectations about investment performance remains independent advisers' biggest challenge, but they are regaining confidence in the economy and directing more investments to equities and away from cash and bonds, according to The Charles Schwab Corp.'s semiannual Independent Advisor Outlook Study.
Fidelity Investments, responding to The Charles Schwab Corp.'s June announcement of price reductions for independent advisers and their clients, is rolling out a competing program with a few extra twists.
AIG Investments, the asset management arm of American International Group Inc., is close to being sold to a group that includes private equity firm Crestview Partners for $300 million to $400 million, Reuters reported today, citing a source.
Banking group Barclays PLC said today that first-half net profit increased 10 percent as stronger earnings from its expanded investment banking division outweighed an increase in bad loans.
A top index provider is considering offering its own lineup of exchange traded funds, but just what those funds would look like is a mystery.
Investment manager BlackRock Inc. said Tuesday its second-quarter profit tumbled 20 percent, but its earnings still surpassed analysts' expectations.
Although state and local governments across the country face staggering budget deficits, their struggles are having little effect on municipal-bond prices.
Investors should prepare for a roller-coaster ride for the rest of the year as equity markets struggle to make headway.
Some well-known equity boutiques have begun offering bond strategies this year, diversifying their portfolios after the market collapse focused attention on the ability of money management companies to cope with severe downturns.
Equity markets in the United States will wind up posting double-digit percentage gains this year, according to Robert Doll, the vice chairman and chief investment officer of New York-based BlackRock Inc.
A new iShares that is more heavily involved in actively managed exchange traded funds will likely emerge as the company changes hands, though some say it might be late to the party.
