 emphasis that has made it a target for 'anti-woke' criticism. Amin Nasser, the chief executive of Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company, has become a director of the world's largest fund manager. Blackrock said the decision reflected the importance of the Middle East to its business and, under Nasser's leadership, the emergence of Aramco as a 'leader in the global energy transition'. But the move comes after Larry Fink, Blackrock's chief executive, has faced a backlash for putting so-called ESG issues at the centre of Blackrock's approach to the markets. In his widely-followed 2020 letters to clients and chief executives, Mr Fink declared 'climate risk is investment risk' and that 'sustainability should be our new standard for investing'. Since then he has rowed back and admitted companies 'cannot be the climate police', however. Mr Fink also did not mention ESG at all in his letters this year, amid an ongoing row with Republican politicians in the US who have accused Blackrock of putting 'woke' ideology before investor returns. Last year Florida, the state run by Republican presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis, said it was pulling $2bn of public assets out of BlackRock's funds in protest and would hand them over to rival money managers.){kind=link}
Appointment latest retreat from ‘ESG’ agenda for world’s largest fund manager
Blackrock has appointed the leader of Saudi Arabia’s oil company to its board, in its latest apparent retreat from the “environmental, social and governance” (ESG) emphasis that has made it a target for “anti-woke” criticism.
Amin Nasser, the chief executive of Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, has become a director of the world’s largest fund manager.
Blackrock said the decision reflected the importance of the Middle East to its business and, under Nasser’s leadership, the emergence of Aramco as a “leader in the global energy transition”.
But the move comes after Larry Fink, Blackrock’s chief executive, has faced a backlash for putting so-called ESG issues at the centre of Blackrock’s approach to the markets.