BlackRock

BlackRock is the world's largest asset-management firm, with approximately $11.6 trillion in assets under management as of Q4 2024 — a figure that exceeds the GDP of every country except the United States and China. Founded in 1988 by Larry Fink, Robert Kapito, Susan Wagner, Barbara Novick, Ben Golub, Hugh Frater, and Ralph Schlosstein (eight co-founders), the company went public in 1999 (NYSE: BLK). BlackRock employs approximately 21,000 people across 38 countries.

The company's asset-management business covers active equity, fixed income, alternatives, multi-asset, and the dominant iShares ETF franchise (the largest ETF business globally, with over $4 trillion in iShares assets). BlackRock is also a major player in cash management, infrastructure (including the 2024 acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners for $12.5 billion), and private credit (the 2024 acquisition of HPS Investment Partners).

The Aladdin platform is BlackRock's strategic technology bet — an enterprise risk-management and portfolio-management platform initially built for BlackRock's own internal use that has been commercialized to over 200 external clients including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, and competitive asset managers. Aladdin powers an estimated $20+ trillion in client assets globally — roughly 10% of all institutional assets worldwide — making it the dominant institutional risk and portfolio platform. Aladdin's AI features span portfolio risk analytics, scenario stress-testing, factor exposure analysis, ESG analytics, and natural-language interaction with portfolio data via the Aladdin Studio interface launched in 2024. Strategic AI partnerships include Microsoft (Azure cloud + AI), NVIDIA, and recent investments in generative AI startups.