BlackRock has been removed from Texas’s investment blacklist, a major reversal that follows the asset management giant’s decision to scale back some of its controversial climate commitments.
The move, announced Tuesday by Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar, ends a three-year ban that had prevented state pension and investment funds from doing business with the world’s largest asset manager over its environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies.
“This marks a meaningful shift,” Hegar said. “Texas has played a leadership role in standing up to financial institutions that try to push political agendas under the guise of environmental concern. We’re seeing a course correction.”
Texas funds hold an estimated $50 billion in assets.
A BlackRock spokesperson told The Post: “We appreciate the Comptroller’s resolution of this matter.”
“More than $4 billion in Texas funds are invested with BlackRock,” the rep said.
The Larry Fink-led company had $11.55 trillion in assets under management at the end of the fourth quarter in 2024.
We are “proud to help millions of Texans retire with dignity and, on behalf of clients, invests over $400 billion in corporations, local governments, energy infrastructure and other private assets throughout the state,” the spokesperson said
“These investments support the continued growth of the Texas economy.”
BlackRock had drawn fire from Republican-led states like Texas for supporting climate-focused investment strategies and for its involvement in initiatives aimed at reducing global emissions.
But over the past year, the New York City-based firm has distanced itself from some of those efforts. In January, it exited the Climate Action 100+ investor group.
It also withdrew from the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative, a UN-backed coalition focused on reducing portfolio emissions.
The rollback appears to have helped smooth tensions with officials in Texas, where fossil fuels remain a key pillar of the economy and political identity.
The Texas comptroller’s office had added BlackRock and other financial firms to its restricted list in 2022 after lawmakers passed legislation targeting perceived boycotts of the oil and gas industry.
That law required the comptroller to identify firms that “discriminate” against fossil fuel companies and to direct state funds to divest from them.
Since then, the blacklist has become a flashpoint in the national debate over ESG investing.
While many conservatives have argued that large asset managers wield too much influence in promoting progressive agendas, others — including some within the financial industry — warned that the restrictions risked limiting returns and politicizing fiduciary decision-making.
BlackRock has repeatedly pushed back on claims that it engages in coordinated efforts to undermine the fossil fuel sector.
“We never set out to penalize any company,” Hegar said Tuesday, “but we made clear there would be consequences for putting politics ahead of financial performance.”
Despite the thaw in relations, BlackRock remains the subject of a separate legal fight with a coalition of Republican attorneys general, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who allege the firm has violated antitrust laws through its ESG commitments.
BlackRock has denied the charges, calling them baseless.
