Can Larry Fink survive the ESG culture wars?

to write letters to thousands of s at once, Larry Fink must flinch these days when one lands on his own doorstep. In recent months the boss of BlackRock, once feted for “democratising” access to investment, has received stinging missives from Republicans and Democrats alike. “Dear Mr Fink,” started one from 19 state attorneys-general on August 4th, accusing BlackRock of selling its customers short by pursuing an “activist” agenda on climate change. “Dear Mr Fink,” began another on September 21st from the progressive head of New York City’s Office of the Comptroller, telling BlackRock it was shortchanging investors—and the planet—by “backtracking” on its climate commitments. The charges are mirror images of each other, making them all the harder to deal with. BlackRock cannot appease one set of government clients without upsetting the other. Who would have thought, as Mr Fink built a business over 35 years based on computing power, low fees and economies of scale, that something as innocuous-sounding as index investing could become such a source of controversy? BlackRock, based in midtown Manhattan, eschews Wall Street’s flashiness. Mr Fink, the son of a shoe-shop owner, has a middle-class Democrat’s scepticism of the quick buck. His letters, known for aphorisms like “climate risk is investment risk”, promote kinder, gentler free-market enterprise, but are in no way anti-capitalist. Tall, bespectacled and sensibly dressed, he makes an unlikely punchbag.