BlackRock acquired Merrill Lynch's asset management division, bringing in more than $500B in assets and pushing the firm's total assets under management above $1T in 2006.

BlackRock played an integral role in the Federal Reserve's response to the Great Recession, managing about $30B of hard-to-sell Bear Stearns assets on behalf of the New York Fed.

Larry Fink cofounded BlackRock with a $5M investment from Blackstone cofounder Stephen Schwarzman in 1988, before officially severing ties with Blackstone in 1994.

Explore a tool that shows how much stake large asset managers, including BlackRock, hold in public companies.

'Aladdin,' which stands for the asset, liability, debt, and derivative investment network, is BlackRock's central software system that models, forecasts, and provides an operating system.

BlackRock sponsored the Federal Reserve's purchasing of corporate debt through exchange-traded funds during the COVID-19 pandemic, while it simultaneously sold some of its own shares on the secondary market—sparking controversy over potentially unfair advantages.

Track all of the acquisitions in BlackRock's history, from eFront to Preqin.

Before Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in 2008 with more than $600B in debt, the Federal Reserve tried to orchestrate a private deal to save the then-fourth-largest investment bank in the US.

Listen to a sit-down interview with BlackRock CEO Larry Fink to learn more about his background, the lessons he's learned throughout his career, and his outlook for the future.

The 'Big Three' asset managers—Vanguard, State Street, and BlackRock—collectively manage more than $30T in assets and are the largest shareholders in roughly 88% of all the companies listed on the S&P 500.

American Express briefly owned Lehman Brothers

In 1984, Shearson, a retail banking company and American Express subsidiary, bought the investment banking company Lehman Brothers—best known for its historic 2008 collapse—for $360M. The businesses were then called Shearson Lehman/American Express. American Express spun off Lehman Brothers with an IPO in 1994 that attracted nearly $3B in new capital.

Red Lobster lost $11M on endless shrimp promotions—but its real estate holdings were what dragged it to bankruptcy

Golden Gate Capital, a PE firm, bought Red Lobster in 2014 for $2.1B. Golden Gate then sold Red Lobster's real estate, more than 500 storefronts, which generated $1.5B in revenue and helped finance the PE firm's acquisition of the company. Analysts say increased debt, high rent costs, and low equity put Red Lobster in an impossible position, leading to its 2024 bankruptcy filing—although the shrimp bill probably didn't help.

BlackRock says investor demand and improvements in underlying fund technology have supercharged ETF availability in 2025

Investors are likely most familiar with ETFs that invest in an index or other grouping of stocks. However, BlackRock breaks down a wide variety of options, including commodity ETFs, currency ETFs, and bond ETFs.

Blackstone acquired a majority stake in Bumble's former parent company in 2019 ahead of the dating app's IPO

The New York City-based investment management company paid about $3B for its stake in female-focused dating app Bumble. The app's 2021 IPO that made Bumble Founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd a billionaire at age 31 proved lucrative for Blackstone as well.

Many investment bankers work on mergers and acquisitions

At some point in their careers, many investment bankers work on facilitating or advising clients on mergers or acquisitions. From analyzing industry group trends to deal negotiations, an M&A in investment banking explainer outlines how investment bankers handle these business transactions.

It has historically been tough for minorities to rise through the ranks in investment banking

According to a Barron’s article, only about 1.3% of the $69T asset management business is managed by firms led by women or minorities—even if their performance is comparable to those led by white men.

In 2023, BlackRock founder Larry Fink turned from an outspoken champion of the 'environmental, social, and governance' framework to a critic.

Apollo Global Management and Blackstone are among the world's top 20 private credit fund managers

While Blackstone is the world's largest alternative asset manager, Apollo Global Management is a large private equity firm. Apollo had $480B in private credit assets under management as of January 2025.

Private equity firms often use leveraged buyouts to acquire new companies

In a leveraged buyout or "LBO," private equity funds finance acquisitions with debt secured by the target company's assets and cash flows. The PE firm aims to improve operations and leverage the company's profile to pay down debt, thereby increasing equity value.

Investment banking giant Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in September 2008 when it had $619B in debt, making it the largest bankruptcy ever in the US

Nearly all of its 26,000 employees immediately lost their jobs. But in London, a few hundred remained tucked away, working for another decade to wind down the bank’s European business.

In March 2008, Bear Stearns was the first major bank to collapse in the Great Recession—leading to panic across the entire global financial system.

American International Group, one of the largest insurance companies in the world, received $182B from the federal government—the largest of any bailout in the wake of the Great Recession.

Read about the National Labor Relations Board case against Bridgewater Associates

In 2016, The New York Times reported about sexual harassment claims at the hedge fund, which uncovered a large-scale case from the National Labor Relations Board over Bridgewater's employees' contracts. The NLRB challenged their intense confidentiality agreements, but the settlement was ironically deemed confidential.

In 2023 and the first half of 2024, Berkshire Hathaway bought back more than $12B of its own stock

In the second half of 2024, the company—and Buffett—decided to buy up shares of Domino’s Pizza, Pool, Sirius XM Holdings, and Liberty Media. They also decided to sell Capital One, Ulta Beauty, and Nu Holdings, among others. Learn why Buffett is buying and selling these stocks and what it could mean for the financial conglomerate.

A private equity firm led the leveraged buyout of Toys 'R' Us before the company's bankruptcy

After being acquired by two private equity firms and a real estate company for more than $6B in 2005, Toys 'R' Us filed for bankruptcy in 2017. Many point to the $400M a year the company had to pay to service its debt, as well as increased competition from online retailers like Amazon, for draining its profits and ultimately dragging it under.

In 2006, Macy's was worth $20B—but as of 2024, its market cap was just under $5B

Macy's went from roughly 800 to 500 stores within the same time period. Macy’s has spent the recent years since the pandemic closing swaths of stores.

One $100 investment in the Medallion Fund skyrockets over time

The Medallion Fund, the famously secretive quant fund that invests billions of dollars for the partners and employees of a single firm with a legendary track record, has trounced the market for more than three decades. While its results are an extreme outlier, this visualization showcases the power of compound interest.

Former US Senator Mitt Romney cofounded a revolutionary private equity firm

Mitt Romney cofounded Bain Capital—a private investment group that manages more than $215B—in the 1980s before becoming a politician. Bain Capital is credited with revolutionizing private equity by focusing on consolidating and streamlining business operations rather than relying on financial engineering to increase company profits.

How JPMorgan Chase became America's biggest bank

From the railroad and steel consolidations brokered by John Pierpont Morgan on Wall Street more than a century ago, to the repeal of Glass-Steagall, the financial crisis, and Jamie Dimon’s leadership, J.P. Morgan Chase has been at the center of finance for more than a century.

Listen to BlackRock's head of behavioral finance, Emily Haisley, explain the psychology of investing—including controlling biases, managing ego, and being prepared for volatility.

The Rockefellers' family office expanded to become a multifamily office

The Rockefellers created the first known single-family office in the late 1800s but the firm has evolved since to serve many wealthy American families.

PetSmart and Hilton are among 10 of the most famous leveraged buyouts in history

Some of the most famous leveraged buyout deals include Blackstone's 2007 acquisition of Hilton Hotels, in which Blackstone took the then-public company private and then returned it to the public markets in 2013. A British PE firm bought PetSmart for $9B in 2014—one of the most expensive leveraged buyouts since 2007.

How the Rockefellers' wealth evolved over time

The Rockefellers built one of the most powerful business empires in US history. By the early 1900s, their company, Standard Oil, controlled over 90% of the US oil market.

Commonly referred to as the 'bank bailout,' the Troubled Asset Relief Program disbursed $443B in an attempt to keep the financial system solvent.

Retail investing by the numbers

When average Americans began pouring into the stock market, Wall Street wasn’t sure if its new guests were there to stay. But at the end of 2023, Public confidently declared that retail investors “weren’t going anywhere” after 30 million new individuals began buying and selling stock. Download the report to learn more here.

Tiffany & Co. was among LVMH's most expensive—and complex—acquisitions

Three years after LVMH acquired Tiffany in 2021 for $15.8B, the jeweler's profits doubled to over $1B per year.

In 1931-32, JP Morgan Jr. paid no income taxes due to his company’s losses

This legally reduced his taxable income under existing laws. Similarly, the Rockefellers leveraged charitable foundations to minimize taxes, allowing them to preserve wealth while directing funds to their preferred causes.

In 2008, the 'Big Short' mastermind Michael Burry made more than $700M.

The world’s top 10 hedge funds

The world’s top 10 hedge funds based on total assets under management include Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates and Citadel.

The Big Three consulting firms are McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company

Some also refer to this group as “MBB.” As a nearly century-old company that’s well known for its prestige, McKinsey has some famous alumni—including Chelsea Clinton and Sheryl Sandberg. The other two consulting firms in the Big Three have employed some famous faces over the years, too.

Private equity deals sometimes come with layoffs.

Explore an alternative investments timeline

From what’s known as the first leveraged buyout, when JPMorgan acquired the Carnegie Steel Company, to the creation of the first-ever hedge fund, alternative investments have a long history.

Ray Dalio officially left Bridgewater Associates in late 2025

In 2017, Ray Dalio began a multiyear transition out of his leadership role at his company. He officially left his role as cochief investment officer and ended his tenure as the board chair in 2022 at 72 years old. How much Dalio made in the selloff of his Bridgewater equity in November 2025 isn't publicly known, but Forbes estimated his net worth to be $15.4B as of early 2026.

Bumble was originally created under the MagicLab parent company

When Blackstone acquired MagicLab in 2019, Bumble Founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd was elevated to CEO of the entire parent company (which also owned Indian dating app Badoo). The parent company was rebranded as Bumble Inc.

Investors need a 'margin account' to short sell stock

Margin accounts are leveraged accounts through brokerage firms that allow investors to make trades without the full amount of capital on hand. Similar to a secured loan, margin accounts often require some form of collateral and typically have a cap on how much investors can borrow. However, trading with a margin account is much riskier than a traditional investment account. Fees and charged interest are due on margin accounts, regardless of trade performance, meaning it's possible for investors to lose more money than just their initial investment.

Since the 1990s, banks have sold some of the credit risk of their accounts to external investors, known as SRTs, or synthetic risk transfers

This means if the account defaults, the outside investors assume most of the risk in return for some regular payments, freeing up the bank's ledger. It is a form of insurance used by banks to allow them to free up capital. In 2024, nearly $100B worth of SRT notes were sold.

Former Sears CEO and hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert was a reclusive billionaire who was once kidnapped from his home in Greenwich, Connecticut by criminals looking to get rich.

The 'Two and Twenty' structure allows hedge funds and private equity firms to earn significant returns

With this structure, firms charge limited partners or "LPs" a 2% management fee for overseeing the fund (assets under management or AUM) and take 20% of the fund's overall profits (carried interest). Many private credit funds also operate under this structure.

How one supplement company cost a short seller $1B

Pershing Square, a hedge fund founded and run by Bill Ackman, put short positions on Herbalife in 2012, because it believed the company was a pyramid scheme. Ackman's longtime rival and legendary investor Carl Icahn began buying Herbalife shares, causing the stock price to rise—ultimately hurting Pershing Square's short position.

In 2012, Bill Ackman's hedge fund, Pershing Square, took a $1B short position against supplement company Herbalife after discovering that 82% of the company's distributors never made a profit, calling it a true pyramid scheme.

The Yale model of investment allocation, explained

College endowment managers long held to the traditional allocation of 60% domestic stocks and 40% bonds. But Yale’s David Swensen developed a new approach: deprioritizing low-risk fixed income and liquid assets in favor of alternative investments to leverage endowments' long-term investment horizons and capture the “liquidity premium.”