Who Owns BlackRock? List of Top 10 Shareholders

BlackRock has become one of the largest asset management companies in the world, with a market cap larger than Nike, Airbnb, and Spotify. Estimated at a value of approximately $12 and growing 16% in the past year alone, the asset manager holds stakes in some of the biggest companies in the world. But who owns BlackRock itself? In this article, discover the top 10 largest BlackRock shareholders.

Key Takeaways 

• BlackRock (BLK) offers asset management, advisory services and risk management solutions.
• Most BlackRock shareholders are institutional investors like Vanguard Group and State Street Corp.   
• Individual BlackRock shareholders include investors like Susan Wagner, Laurence Fink and Robert Kapito.

BlackRock Shareholders' Ownership Structure

BlackRock was founded in 1988 by a team of eight people that shared one goal; the guidance of individuals and institutions worldwide in their current and future investments. With a passion for understanding and managing risk, BlackRock offered their clients the option to manage their assets.

Using Aladdin, BlackRock’s proprietary technology, the company founded BlackRock Solutions in 2000 and became a leading technology provider. In 2012, the company acquired their largest client (Barclays Global Investors) and secured its spot as the market leader for asset management. Since then, BlackRock has expanded to over 19,000 employees worldwide.

BlackRock is publicly owned, meaning all its shares are listed on the market, and there is no single major stakeholder. Instead, the company has an independent board of directors in charge of the decision-making process. The majority of BlackRock shareholders are institutional investors like Vanguard Group and Bank of America. Below, we discuss the top BlackRock shareholders in institutional and individual categories.

BlackRock Shareholders: Top 5 Institutional Owners

BlackRock’s largest shareholders are institutional investors, who make up about 51.78% of the company’s ownership. Here are the top five institutional owners of BlackRock. 

1. Vanguard Group  

With roughly 30 million investors, Vanguard Group forms one of the biggest investment companies in the world. The firm is based in Pennsylvania but operates globally, offering advisory services and investment options to its clients. Vanguard owns 13,182,262 BlackRock shares, with a value of $10.9 billion, which is 8.87% of the total BlackRock shares, making it the largest BlackRock shareholder.   

2. BlackRock Inc  

The risk and asset management company itself is the second largest BlackRock shareholder. With 9,604,250 owned shares valued at $8 billion dollars, the company owns 6.46% of its own BlackRock stock.   

3. State Street Corp 

State Street Corp also offers investment and asset management services. The company has offices on four continents, but its main headquarters is in Boston, Massachusetts, in the US. State Street is the third largest shareholder of BlackRock stock, owning 5,928,745 shares which is 3.98% of the company and valued at around $4.94 billion.  

4. Bank of America  

Besides its usual banking services, Bank of America is also an active member of the investment market. Its clients have many financial solutions and investment options at their disposal, which is in line with the company’s goal to give the community more control over their finances. Bank of America is the fourth largest institutional BlackRock shareholder, with 5,196,941 shares, 3.49% of the total BlackRock shares, valued at around $4.33 billion.   

5. Temasek Holdings  

The last investor in this top five list is global investment company Temasek Holdings. Based in Singapore, this company has one sole shareholder; the Singaporean government. However, even with the minister of finance at its head, the company remains a commercial one, with little to no interference from the government itself. Temasek Holdings owns 5,115,491 shares, which is 3.44% of BlackRock shares, valued at around $4.26 billion. 

BlackRock Shareholders: Top 5 Individual Owners

The remaining 48.22% of BlackRock shares are owned individually, mainly consisting of founders and employees. Here are the top 5 individual owners who own BlackRock.

1. Susan Wagner  

After co-founding BlackRock, Susan was a director in the asset management company. She retired in 2012 but has remained on the board to this day. Her share of the company comes to roughly $352.9 million, with ownership over 427,887 (0.28%) of the total BlackRock shares, making her the largest individual BlackRock shareholder.

2. Laurence Fink  

Chairman and executive officer Laurence D. Fink is the second on the list. Being one of the original eight founders, Laurence played a big role in the evolution of BlackRock to the company it is today. Besides his involvement with BlackRock, Fink is part of numerous boards, including the Board of Trustees of New York University (NYU) and the boards of the Museum of Modern Art. As the second largest individual BlackRock shareholder, he holds 0.27% of BlackRock stock; 414,146 shares with a value of more than $341.6 million.

3. Robert Kapito 

Like the above-mentioned individuals, Kapito helped found BlackRock and assumed his role as president and director. In addition to his current role at BlackRock, Kapito is actively involved in education institutes, including the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Business School. Robert Kapito owns 217,127 of the total shares of BlackRock, which is 0.14% and has a value of $179.1 million.

4. J. Richard Kushel  

Before his position as Senior Managing Director and Head of the Portfolio Management Group, J. Richard Kushel had assumed many positions within BlackRock. His responsibilities ranged from Head of Strategic Product Management to Chief Product Officer and Deputy COO. As the fourth largest individual BlackRock shareholder, Kushel owns approximately $55.4 million worth of BlackRock shares. This translates to 67,107 shares, making up 0.04% of the total BlackRock shares.

5. Murry Gerber  

Gerber is currently the Lead Independent Director for BlackRock. Prior to this, he held positions in companies like Shell, Coral Energy, and EQT Corporation. He holds 42,648 shares with a value of $35.2 million, meaning that he owns 0.02% of the company, thus completing the top five individual BlackRock shareholder list. 

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Conclusion 

As a publicly owned entity, BlackRock has many shareholders trying to capitalise on its potential growth. Even though all of BlackRock’s shares are open to the public, the company itself is the second largest institutional BlackRock shareholder. Additionally, the top five individual shareholders are all founders or long-term employees of the company, linking those shares (indirectly) back to the company as well. The rest of the largest institutional shareholders are major companies or corporations like Vanguard Group, State Street Corp, Bank of America and Temasek Holdings. 

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FAQs on Largest BlackRock Shareholders

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