The Bid

In the wake of the financial crisis, there was an expectation that robo-advisors – digital platforms that manage money – would take over investing. Years later, that hasn't happened. But with hundreds of billions of dollars under management, robo-advisors have been successful at driving the adoption of investing among millennials. So how do you build a robo-advisor? On this episode of The Bid...

On September 14th, a series of airstrikes hit two Saudi Arabian energy facilities. It was the most significant attack on energy infrastructure in decades – but markets didn’t seem to think so. So why was the reaction so muted? On this episode of The Bid, Amer Bisat, Head of Emerging Market and Sovereign Alpha, sheds some light on the mystery: what happened, why it happened and what comes next. He...

For the past 10 years, investors have been riding a bull market – a stock market that’s on the rise – in the U.S. But ripples are showing beneath the surface, from trade and geopolitical tensions to changing demographics around the world. But according to Rick Rieder, Chief Investment Officer for Global Fixed Income and Head of Global Allocation, there’s still a lot to be excited about. On this ep...

It was the bubble to rival all bubbles. In March of 2000, the tech-heavy Nasdaq stock index hit its dot-com era peak. But by the fall of 2002, it was nearly all gone, alongside many of tech’s unicorn companies.   It would take 15 years for the Nasdaq to reclaim its losses, and today tells a different story. Tech stocks are back in the headlines as the sector to keep an eye on. On this episode...

Nearly one in six people worldwide don’t have the physical documentation they need to access healthcare, housing or to vote. But what if our identities were completely digitized? It’d be just one of the many ways that blockchain could enter our daily lives. The hype for blockchain has simmered compared to past euphoria – but there’s still a lot to look forward to. On this episode of The Bid, Black...

From New York to new players like Denver and Seattle, cities are growing and developing by the second. Brick and mortar stores are being replaced by e-commerce, e-commerce companies are actually opening brick and mortar locations, and co-working and co-living spaces are becoming the norm.   On this episode of The Bid, Ben Young, Head of U.S. Real Estate, discusses the three biggest disruptors...

Movies can tell us a lot about how our society is changing and progressing. Since Jurassic Park came out, the cost of mapping a human genome has drop 99.9% from $14 million to just $1,000. And since The Terminator , robots have become a $15 trillion market worldwide. The topics of science fiction have now become science fact. Megatrends are changing the trajectory of the global economy by shifting...

A home goods store started selling a bread machine. When the bread machine first came out, sales were – perhaps unsurprisingly – slow. But then, they released a deluxe version that was 50% more expensive. Suddenly, the original started flying off the shelves. When it comes to money, our irrationalities – our biases – impact more than just our purchasing behavior. They also impact our investment de...

When was the last time you bought a shirt you didn’t need, just because it was on sale? Or you drank a $5 coffee when there was cheaper coffee across the street? People are irrational, despite our best efforts otherwise, particularly when it comes to money. On this episode of The Bid, Dan Ariely, behavioral economist, professor at Duke University, and co-founder of Common Cents Lab, speaks about w...

Markets appear poised for change. Global growth is slowing, we are late in the business cycle, and geopolitical tensions could potentially wind back decades of globalization. What will be the main drivers of markets for the rest of this year? On this episode of The Bid, we’ll hear views on our midyear outlook from strategists and portfolio managers such as Elga Bartsch, Head of Macro Research...

Markets are sending mixed signals. After a downturn at the end of 2018, we’ve seen the stock market rally in 2019 against a backdrop of geopolitical ups and downs. The whiplash looks set to continue, with trade disputes ongoing in almost every world region, 2020 U.S. elections in full swing and tensions building in the Gulf. Our measure of market chatter around geopolitics – the BlackRock Geopolit...

Sometimes it feels like tech is all we talk about these days. And it’s not just in conversation – our Google searches for buzzwords like blockchain and 5G are up over 1,000% in the past few years. But what topics aren’t we covering? New York Times technology columnist Kevin Roose is often the first to know. On this episode of The Bid, Kevin discusses his learnings from the dark underbelly of the i...

From companies like Alibaba and Tencent to artificial intelligence and the development of 5G technology, China has become one of the most vibrant hubs for technology in the world. But surprisingly, it’s all pretty recent. In 2010, only about one-third of China’s population was using the internet, compared to 71% in the U.S. How did China become a technology superpower, and how will the race move f...

China has experienced huge economic success in the last 30 years. With over a 4,000% increase in its GDP, it has transformed from a mainly poor and rural country into a global manufacturing – and technology – superpower. What’s behind its overwhelming success, and how can investors take advantage? On this episode of The Bid, Jeff Shen, Co-Head of Systematic Active Equity, talks about why China is...

Think about the last time you switched on a light, charged your phone or cooked. Where did that electricity come from? More and more, that power is coming from renewable sources, such as wind and solar, instead of fossil fuels. And as we focus more on society’s impact on the environment and our climate, renewable energy is becoming harder to ignore. On this episode of The Bid, David Giordano, Glob...

Poker may seem like a vice. But perhaps it teaches us less about how to win money, and more about how we make decisions. And often? In life, like in poker, we’re not as good as making decisions as we think we are – especially when we have incomplete information. On this episode of The Bid, Maria Konnikova, psychologist, New York Times bestselling author and world champion poker player discusses ho...

A bumpy ride for stocks in 2018 sparked fears that the next recession was around the corner. But this year, we’re seeing a different story play out. Stocks have rallied. The question is, what’s behind the rally and can it last? On this episode of The Bid, Chief Equity Strategist Kate Moore discusses why she still likes taking risks in stocks, why we shouldn’t bet against China and how to take adva...

The drama over Brexit – the United Kingdom’s June 2016 decision to leave the European Union – continues to dominate headlines. But from key elections to transatlantic trade threats, it’s one of many issues keeping Europe alert. Across the continent, what’s happening now, and what comes next? On this episode of The Bid, Chief Multi-Asset Strategist Isabelle Mateos y Lago helps us make sense of what...

There’s a gap between men and women that we’re not talking about: a retirement gap. Only 52% of women are saving for retirement, versus 61% of men. More women feel stress at the thought of investing, and more women believe that investing isn’t for people like them. On this episode of The Bid, we break the glass ceiling with Anne Ackerley, Head of U.S. and Canada Defined Contribution and co-founder...

It’s a timeless question that’s puzzled people from Cicero in Ancient Rome to rappers like Kendrick Lamar today: Can money really make you happier? We surveyed 27,000 people around the world to find out. What we found? Investing for the future can make you feel better today – so then why are less than half of Americans doing it? On this episode of The Bid, President Rob Kapito discusses how t...

Money is ranked the #1 source of stress in people’s lives, higher than physical health, work or family. But while we’re often willing to talk about the rest of these stressors, money is surrounded by taboo. How can we turn this concept into something approachable and part of cultural conversation?  The key: Making wealth a part of our overall picture of well-being. On this episode of The Bid,...

Geopolitical headlines infiltrate news feeds on a daily, if not hourly, basis. The challenge? Separating the signal from the noise — identifying what matters and what’s coming next. In the first episode of our regular series on geopolitics, Tom Donilon, Chairman of the BlackRock Investment Institute and former U.S. National Security Advisor, discusses the geopolitical risks that will shape the yea...

With better technology comes advances in nearly all areas of life, including investing. One you may not have thought of? Sustainable investing. Brian Deese, Global Head of Sustainable Investing, discusses how advances in data and technology have allowed for better insight into how companies are performing against environmental, social and governance goals, and why now is the time to get ahead of t...

Ten years after the global financial crisis, markets have had a bumpy ride. Investors are starting to ask: Is a recession on the horizon, or do we still have a ways to go? Richard Turnill, Chief Investment Strategist for the BlackRock Investment Institute, discusses why he’s still optimistic for the year ahead. This material is intended for U.S. distribution only. This material is for informationa...

Developments in artificial intelligence have made our lives easier, but they have also sparked fears of replacement. The secret? Coupling man and machine. Stephen Boyd, Chair of the Electrical Engineering department at Stanford and head of BlackRock’s Artificial Intelligence Lab, discusses why from space travel to investing, the centaur may be the way of the future. This material is intended for U...