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Biden Introduces Picks for Top Economic Positions
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President-elect Joe Biden introduced picks for his economic team during an event in Wilmington, Del., on Tuesday. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Associated Press
By Dawn Lim
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and Gregory Zuckerman
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Updated Dec. 1, 2020 2:44 pm ET
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Wall Street bankers, and in particular those from Goldman Sachs Group Inc., GS -0.61%▼have long held senior positions in the White House. Under President-elect Joe Biden, such roles are going to executives of BlackRock Inc.BLK -1.02%▼
A former Goldman executive held the Treasury secretary post in three of the last four administrations, but the firm is absent so far from the White House this time. Instead, two executives who have worked at asset-management giant BlackRock will be the senior Wall Street representatives.
Mr. Biden is expected this week to name BlackRock’s head of sustainable investing, Brian Deese, to run the National Economic Council, said people familiar with the matter. Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo, a former chief of staff to BlackRock’s chief executive, was named Tuesday to be the No. 2 at the Treasury Department.
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“By picking folks with deep ties to large asset managers, the administration can help assuage financial executives’ concerns. It sends a clear signal to the industry to breathe easier: They can plan for stability without likely facing massive new regulatory or tax risks,” said Tyler Gellasch, executive director of investor trade group Healthy Markets Association.
Some progressives and investor advocates worry that the naming of any finance executives could result in looser regulatory scrutiny on big money managers.
But broadly, BlackRock may not draw the kind of anger that traditional Wall Street banks like Goldman tend to generate. BlackRock is in the business of investing money for individuals and institutions like endowments, and much of its growth comes from funds that track market indexes.
Asset managers like BlackRock don’t arrange mergers and acquisitions, they don’t earn big profits from trading and their employees, while well paid, often aren’t seen within the finance industry as swaggering bankers. The firm has faced criticism for investing in companies that contribute to climate change, and for failing to live up to its own rhetoric on the subject, environmental activists say. It pledged this year to take a tougher stance.
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The role of BlackRock alumni in the Biden administration is the latest chapter in a decadelong rise in both Washington and on Wall Street. BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world with $7.8 trillion under management as of September. As it has grown, it has both boosted its operations in Washington and hired government officials. Messrs. Deese and Adeyemo worked in the Obama administration.
Adewale ‘Wally’ Adeyemo, left, and Brian Deese, second from left, shown at a briefing during the Obama administration in 2016. They are now set to take new roles in the Biden administration.PHOTO: SUSAN WALSH/ASSOCIATED PRESS
BlackRock’s global footprint and experience with markets “will be invaluable as the president-elect navigates a slowing economy and turbulent markets in the wake of the pandemic,” said Stefan Selig, an investment banker who runs BridgePark Advisors LLC and was undersecretary of Commerce during the Obama administration.
The Biden administration economic team will be filled with economists and policy makers who focus on areas such as income inequality and labor markets. That is a contrast to the Trump administration, which named former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary, former Goldman President Gary Cohn as an economic adviser and other firm alumni to senior roles. Goldman veteran Robert Rubin served as President Bill Clinton’s Treasury secretary, while Henry Paulson Jr. occupied the position in President George W. Bush’s second term. The Obama administration had few Wall Street executives.
Mr. Adeyemo, a former senior international economic adviser during the Obama
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BlackRock Emerges as Wall Street Player in Biden Administration
Two executives who have worked at the money manager are set to take roles at Treasury and the National Economic Council
Biden Introduces Picks for Top Economic Positions
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
Biden Introduces Picks for Top Economic PositionsPlay video: Biden Introduces Picks for Top Economic Positions
President-elect Joe Biden introduced picks for his economic team during an event in Wilmington, Del., on Tuesday. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Associated Press
By Dawn Lim
Follow
and Gregory Zuckerman
Follow
Updated Dec. 1, 2020 2:44 pm ET
SHARE
TEXT
67
Listen to article
Length (7 minutes)
Wall Street bankers, and in particular those from Goldman Sachs Group Inc., GS -0.61%▼have long held senior positions in the White House. Under President-elect Joe Biden, such roles are going to executives of BlackRock Inc.BLK -1.02%▼
A former Goldman executive held the Treasury secretary post in three of the last four administrations, but the firm is absent so far from the White House this time. Instead, two executives who have worked at asset-management giant BlackRock will be the senior Wall Street representatives.
Mr. Biden is expected this week to name BlackRock’s head of sustainable investing, Brian Deese, to run the National Economic Council, said people familiar with the matter. Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo, a former chief of staff to BlackRock’s chief executive, was named Tuesday to be the No. 2 at the Treasury Department.
Advertisement - Scroll to Continue
“By picking folks with deep ties to large asset managers, the administration can help assuage financial executives’ concerns. It sends a clear signal to the industry to breathe easier: They can plan for stability without likely facing massive new regulatory or tax risks,” said Tyler Gellasch, executive director of investor trade group Healthy Markets Association.
Some progressives and investor advocates worry that the naming of any finance executives could result in looser regulatory scrutiny on big money managers.
But broadly, BlackRock may not draw the kind of anger that traditional Wall Street banks like Goldman tend to generate. BlackRock is in the business of investing money for individuals and institutions like endowments, and much of its growth comes from funds that track market indexes.
Asset managers like BlackRock don’t arrange mergers and acquisitions, they don’t earn big profits from trading and their employees, while well paid, often aren’t seen within the finance industry as swaggering bankers. The firm has faced criticism for investing in companies that contribute to climate change, and for failing to live up to its own rhetoric on the subject, environmental activists say. It pledged this year to take a tougher stance.
Advertisement - Scroll to Continue
The role of BlackRock alumni in the Biden administration is the latest chapter in a decadelong rise in both Washington and on Wall Street. BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world with $7.8 trillion under management as of September. As it has grown, it has both boosted its operations in Washington and hired government officials. Messrs. Deese and Adeyemo worked in the Obama administration.
BlackRock’s global footprint and experience with markets “will be invaluable as the president-elect navigates a slowing economy and turbulent markets in the wake of the pandemic,” said Stefan Selig, an investment banker who runs BridgePark Advisors LLC and was undersecretary of Commerce during the Obama administration.
The Biden administration economic team will be filled with economists and policy makers who focus on areas such as income inequality and labor markets. That is a contrast to the Trump administration, which named former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary, former Goldman President Gary Cohn as an economic adviser and other firm alumni to senior roles. Goldman veteran Robert Rubin served as President Bill Clinton’s Treasury secretary, while Henry Paulson Jr. occupied the position in President George W. Bush’s second term. The Obama administration had few Wall Street executives.
MORE ON BLACKROCK
- BlackRock’s Third-Quarter Profit Climbed on Steady Inflows, Higher Fee Revenue (Oct. 13)
- Fed Hires BlackRock to Help Calm Markets. Its ETF Business Wins Big. (Sept. 18)
- BlackRock to Hold Companies and Itself to Higher Standards on Climate Risk (Jan. 14)
Mr. Adeyemo, a former senior international economic adviser during the Obama
