Basis of Presentation    

These condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) and include the accounts of the Company and its controlled subsidiaries. Noncontrolling interests (“NCI”) on the condensed consolidated statements of financial condition represents the portion of consolidated sponsored investment funds in which the Company does not have direct equity ownership. Accounts and transactions between consolidated entities have been eliminated.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expense during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Certain financial information that normally is included in annual financial statements, including certain financial statement footnotes, is not required for interim reporting purposes and has been condensed or omitted herein. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements and notes related thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on February 28, 2019 (“2018 Form 10-K”).

The interim financial information at June 30, 2019 and for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018 is unaudited. However, in the opinion of management, the interim information includes all normal recurring adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s results for the periods presented. The results of operations for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected for the full year.

Certain prior period presentations and disclosures were reclassified to ensure comparability with current period classifications.

Fair Value Measurements

Hierarchy of Fair Value Inputs.   The Company uses a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation approaches used to measure fair value. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs. Assets and liabilities measured and reported at fair value are classified and disclosed in one of the following categories:

Level 1 Inputs:

Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the reporting date.

Level 2 Inputs:

Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities that are not active; quotes from pricing services or brokers for which the Company can determine that orderly transactions took place at the quoted price or that the inputs used to arrive at the price are observable; and inputs other than quoted prices that are observable, such as models or other valuation methodologies.

Level 3 Inputs:

Unobservable inputs for the valuation of the asset or liability, which may include nonbinding broker quotes. Level 3 assets include investments for which there is little, if any, market activity. These inputs require significant management judgment or estimation.

Significance of Inputs.   The Company’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment and considers factors specific to the financial instrument.

Valuation Approaches.   The fair values of certain Level 3 assets and liabilities were determined using various valuation approaches as appropriate, including third-party pricing vendors, broker quotes and market and income approaches.

A significant number of inputs used to value equity, debt securities, investments in CLOs and bank loans is sourced from third-party pricing vendors. Generally, prices obtained from pricing vendors are categorized as Level 1 inputs for identical securities traded in active markets and as Level 2 for other similar securities if the vendor uses observable inputs in determining the price.

In addition, quotes obtained from brokers generally are nonbinding and categorized as Level 3 inputs. However, if the Company is able to determine that market participants have transacted for the asset in an orderly manner near the quoted price or if the Company can determine that the inputs used by the broker are observable, the quote is classified as a Level 2 input.

Investments Measured at Net Asset Values.    As a practical expedient, the Company uses net asset value (“NAV”) as the fair value for certain investments. The inputs to value these investments may include the Company’s capital accounts for its partnership interests in various alternative investments, including hedge funds, real assets and private equity funds, which may be adjusted by using the returns of certain market indices. The various partnerships generally are investment companies, which record their underlying investments at fair value based on fair value policies established by management of the underlying fund. Fair value policies at the underlying fund generally require the fund to utilize pricing/valuation information from third-party sources, including independent appraisals. However, in some instances, current valuation information for illiquid securities or securities in markets that are not active may not be available from any third-party source or fund management may conclude that the valuations that are available from third-party sources are not reliable. In these instances, fund management may perform model-based analytical valuations that could be used as an input to value these investments.

Fair Value of Assets and Liabilities of Consolidated CLO.    The Company applies the fair value option provisions for eligible assets, including bank loans, held by consolidated CLOs. As the fair value of the financial assets of the consolidated CLO is more observable than the fair value of the borrowings of the consolidated CLO, the Company measures the fair value of the borrowings of the consolidated CLO as the fair value of the assets of the consolidated CLO less the fair value of the Company’s economic interest in the CLO.

Leases. The Company determines if a contract is a lease or contains a lease at inception. The Company accounts for its office facility leases as operating leases, which may include escalation clauses that are based on an index or market rate. The Company accounts for lease and non-lease components as a single component for its leases. The Company elected the short-term lease exception for leases with an initial term of 12 months or less. Consequently, such leases are not recorded on the condensed consolidated statement of financial condition. The Company’s lease terms include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain they will be exercised or not, respectively.

Fixed lease payments are included in ROU assets and lease liabilities within other assets and other liabilities, respectively, on the condensed consolidated statement of financial condition. ROU assets and lease liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future lease payments over the lease term at the commencement date using the Company’s incremental borrowing rate as the discount rate. Fixed lease payments made over the lease term are recorded as lease expense on a straight-line basis. Variable lease payments based on usage, changes in an index or market rate are expensed as incurred.  

Upon adoption of ASU 2016-02, for existing leases, the Company elected to determine the discount rate based on the remaining lease term as of January 1, 2019 and for lease payments based on an index or rate to apply the rate at commencement date. For new leases, the discount rates are based on the entire noncancelable lease term.  

Separate Account Collateral Assets Held and Liabilities Under Securities Lending Agreements.   The Company facilitates securities lending arrangements whereby securities held by separate accounts maintained by BlackRock Life Limited are lent to third parties under global master securities lending agreements. In exchange, the Company receives legal title to the collateral with minimum values generally ranging from approximately 102% to 112% of the value of the securities lent in order to reduce counterparty risk. The required collateral value is calculated on a daily basis. The global master securities lending agreements provide the Company the right to request additional collateral or, in the event of borrower default, the right to liquidate collateral. The securities lending transactions entered into by the Company are accompanied by an agreement that entitles the Company to request the borrower to return the securities at any time; therefore, these transactions are not reported as sales.

The Company records on the condensed consolidated statements of financial condition the cash and noncash collateral received under these BlackRock Life Limited securities lending arrangements as its own asset in addition to an equal and offsetting collateral liability for the obligation to return the collateral. The securities lending revenue earned from lending securities held by the separate accounts is included in investment advisory, administration fees and securities lending revenue on the condensed consolidated statements of income. During the six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018, the Company had not resold or repledged any of the collateral received under these arrangements. At June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, the fair value of loaned securities held by separate accounts was approximately $17.0 billion and $18.9 billion, respectively, and the fair value of the collateral held under these securities lending agreements was approximately $18.4 billion and $20.7 billion, respectively.