BlackRock's Fink warns of protectionism amid private market push

By Iain Withers and Ross Kerber

LONDON/BOSTON (Reuters) -BlackRock Chief Executive and Chairman Larry Fink on Monday said "protectionism has returned with force," a development he said stemmed from a wealth divide that could be countered by offering more investors access to private markets.

Fink wrote in his annual chairman's letter that too many people are currently missing out on prosperity in twin-speed economies, where the wealthy build more wealth and others face deeper hardship.

The comments come just days before U.S. President Donald Trump has promised to unveil a massive tariff plan on Wednesday, which he has dubbed "Liberation Day." He has already imposed tariffs on aluminum, steel and autos, along with increased tariffs on all goods from China.

"Capitalism did work — just for too few people," Fink wrote in his letter published on Monday, adding the divide had helped fuel a rise in protectionist policies, whilst not mentioning Trump once in a letter running to some 10,000 words.

Fink said nearly every client, leader and person he spoke to was more anxious about the economy than at "any time in recent memory", but he said markets tended to perform in the long run.

The BlackRock boss' main argument to resolve these problems was to further "democratize" markets, partly by helping a greater number of consumers access potentially higher returns in private markets such as infrastructure and private credit - investment areas into which BlackRock has expanded heavily recently as it tries to diversify its business.

BlackRock became the world's biggest money manager thanks mainly to the popularity of low-cost passive index-tracking funds and had $11.6 trillion in assets under management as of December 31. It went on a buying spree last year to add infrastructure specialist Global Infrastructure Partners, private credit provider HPS and private data firm Preqin. 

Private assets, unlike publicly traded stocks and bonds, are typically not listed, are traded less frequently and their pricing can be opaque, raising potential risks for retail investors.

Fink even suggested the private assets could reshape the standard investment portfolio from 60% stocks and 40% bonds to one that would be 50% stocks, 30% bonds and 20% private assets.

"While these private assets may carry greater risk, they also provide great benefits" including inflation protection, stability and returns, Fink wrote.

VAST INFLUENCE

BlackRock's size has made Fink's letters closely watched. In 2020 he called on companies to do more to tackle climate change, and BlackRock began to pay more attention to other social issues like workforce diversity. The shift prompted a backlash from Republican politicians, many from energy-producing states, putting BlackRock on the defensive and leading it to quit environmentally focused investor groups.

The exits have helped bring BlackRock back into Republicans' good graces along with a recent agreement to purchase two ports on both sides of the Panama Canal, although that deal still faces challenges from international trade tensions.

Fink did not mention the political shifts in his letter. He did however include a warning that the U.S. dollar's status as the world's reserve currency is "not guaranteed to last forever" amid growing payments on the national debt.

"If the U.S. doesn’t get its debt under control, if deficits keep ballooning, America risks losing that position to digital assets like Bitcoin," Fink wrote.

(Reporting by Iain Withers in London and Ross Kerber in Boston. Additional reporting by Davide Barbuscia; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Chizu Nomiyama and Andrea Ricci)