From Bloomberg News:
April 15 (Bloomberg) — Laurence Fink, who started BlackRock Inc. in a one-room midtown Manhattan office, was turned away by an investment consultant in 1988 with the words, “Just what the world needs, another bond manager.”
Two decades later, Fink runs the biggest publicly traded U.S. fund company and has earned a reputation as a skilled risk manager. New York-based BlackRock was picked March 24 by the Federal Reserve to oversee $30 billion of Bear Stearns Cos.’ investments after the fifth-largest U.S. securities firm agreed to be acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co. Fink was called in last year to save a Florida state money fund.
“If there is a 911 for fixed-income assistance, the phone would ring at Larry Fink’s office,” said James Ellman, president of San Francisco-based SeaCliff Capital LLC, which oversees $150 million and holds BlackRock shares. “BlackRock is a real beneficiary from the credit crunch.”
The company has gained 29 percent in New York Stock Exchange trading in the past year, compared with the 8.5 percent decline of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and 30 percent drop by the Russell 1000 Financial Index. It’s the best-performing asset manager in the Russell index and fourth overall.
Read full article: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601206&sid=adcfDm4aWtQg&refer=realestate
