Private market push in focus as BlackRock hosts investor day

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a day ago

By Davide Barbuscia
NEW YORK (Reuters) -BlackRock will hold an investor day on Thursday that is expected to provide insight into the asset management firm's strategic priorities and its growing focus on private markets.
The world's largest asset manager, overseeing $11.58 trillion as of the end of the first quarter, last year expanded its presence in private markets through a series of acquisitions that BlackRock's boss Larry Fink said were transformational for the New York-based firm.
BlackRock spent about $25 billion in 2024 on infrastructure investment fund Global Infrastructure Partners and private credit business HPS Investment Partners. It also struck a $3.2 billion deal to acquire UK data provider Preqin. That acquisition officially closed in March this year.
"I think investors are going to want more granular details and more color on BlackRock's strategy to increase exposure to alternative assets," said Cathy Seifert, an analyst at CFRA Research who covers BlackRock.
BlackRock declined to comment on the focus of its investor day.
Private assets generate significantly higher fees than exchange-traded funds (ETFs), a core part of BlackRock's business through its iShares franchise.
In his 2025 annual chairman's letter to shareholders, BlackRock's Chairman and CEO Fink said protectionism had returned with force as a result of a wealth divide that could be countered by offering more investors access to high-return private markets such as infrastructure and private credit.
Ben Budish, an analyst at Barclays, said he expected updates from the company on potentially creating indexes based on private markets after the acquisition of private markets data provider Preqin.
"Looking at what BlackRock did with iShares and ETFs, is there a way to do that with private markets? … I'm sure there's more details to come on that," he said.
Private credit, where non-bank institutions lend to companies, has experienced significant growth in recent years due to stricter regulations that have increased the cost for traditional banks to fund higher-risk loans.
But broader market volatility caused by U.S. President Donald Trump's aggressive stance on tariffs has led to slower dealmaking in private markets in general, raising some concerns there may be a mismatch between money available for private lending and not enough places to invest it.
Investors may also look for any signs regarding succession at the firm. Fink, 72, has led BlackRock since co-founding it in 1988. A recent wave of senior executive departures has reignited speculation about his eventual successor, even as Fink has signaled no immediate plan to step down.
"The firm would do itself a favor by highlighting the depth and breadth of their management bench, particularly since the company's business model is expanding and potentially becoming more complex," said Seifert.