Bloomberg – BlackRock Inc.’s Barbara Novick was contemplating retirement a year ago when Chief Executive Officer Laurence D. Fink asked her if she would jumpstart lobbying efforts in Washington.
The acquisition of Barclays Global Investors on Dec. 1 had made BlackRock the world’s biggest asset-management firm. With $3.4 trillion client assets held in investment vehicles ranging from money-market funds to hedge funds, Fink realized he couldn’t rely on industry groups or outside lobbyists as lawmakers discussed the biggest regulatory overhaul since the 1930s. Novick, one of the firm’s eight founders, accepted.
