BlackRock’s Third Pivot Is Its Most Adventurous Yet
After adding equities and passive investment products, the world’s biggest asset manager is expanding its private markets franchise.
Larry Fink, chief executive officer of BlackRock, is undertaking his most ambitious pivot yet.
Photographer: Tolga Akmen/EPA/Bloomberg
When BlackRock Inc. completed its initial public offering in 1999, it fell a bit flat. There was no first day pop; Founder and Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink didn’t even get to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange. Valued at just under $900 million, the firm was one of 30 large investment-managers in the US, managing $165 billion of assets.
This month, the firm marks its 25th anniversary on the stock market — and how it’s grown. BlackRock is now the largest player in its field, with assets of almost $11.5 trillion and a market cap of nearly $150 billion; its executives regularly ring the bell to celebrate the launch of another BlackRock-branded exchange-traded fund.