BlackRock CEO Larry Fink Wants a Kinder, Gentler Capitalism. He Should Look At His Own Investments.
Derek Seidman, 18 January 2018
Larry D. Fink may be the most powerful investor in the world. As founder and CEO of BlackRock, he oversees the investment of around $6 trillion – yes, trillion – in funds. When Fink talks, companies listen. Now Fink appears to be trying to wield BlackRock’s influence for good. In a letter he drafted that he’s sending to CEOs, Fink writes:
“Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society.”
The New York Times went so far as to say the letter “may be a watershed moment on Wall Street, one that raises all sorts of questions about the very nature of capitalism.”
But if Fink is pushing a new wave of shareholder activism to promote social responsibility, he doesn’t need to go much further than his own company. BlackRock is a huge investor in some of the nastiest industries around – private prisons, fossil fuels, and shady banks, to name a few.
