As the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock provides a wide range of investment products and services for both institutional and individual investors. When investing with BlackRock, investors need to understand its various investment philosophies and choose suitable products based on their own risk tolerance and investment goals. This article compares different investment strategies adopted by BlackRock, including passive indexing, active management, and alternative investments, as well as key factors to consider when selecting BlackRock’s investment portfolios.

BlackRock’s core competence in passive indexing and ETF offerings
BlackRock is a pioneer and leader in passive investing and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). It manages over $3 trillion assets through its iShares ETFs. When investing with BlackRock, its low-cost ETFs and index funds should be a major consideration for investors looking for broad market exposure. BlackRock also offers model portfolios mainly comprised of ETFs for customized solutions.
BlackRock’s active investment capabilities
While best known for passive products, BlackRock also offers active investment strategies across equity, fixed income, multi-asset and alternative funds. Its active funds are managed by investment professionals aiming to generate alpha over benchmarks. However, investors should be aware of the higher fees and volatility associated with active management.
BlackRock’s alternative investment offerings
BlackRock manages over $200 billion alternative assets covering private equity, real estate, infrastructure, hedge funds and more. Its alternative investment arm operates under the Blackstone brand. These investments can further diversify a portfolio but often require higher investment minimums and liquidity constraints for individual investors.
When investing with BlackRock, understanding its diverse capabilities across passive, active and alternative investments is crucial for portfolio construction. Individual investors on BlackRock need to assess suitable products aligned with their financial situations and risk tolerance levels.