Multi-Asset Strategies & Solutions

These paintings aren’t for everyone, but I love their expressive nature. It takes a lot of focus, patience. It's the small moves that make the big picture.

I'm Michael Gates, Head of Model Portfolio Solutions in the Americas at BlackRock.

I was mainly interested in chemistry and biology in college, which is where I learned to approach things with scientific rigor. When I got my master's in economics and joined BlackRock 23 years ago, I knew I'd found my dream job taking a scientific approach directly to the markets.

My team creates and maintains Target Allocation Model Portfolios that we design to be tractable. We use the Aladdin platform to look through to the underlying holdings of our investments and examine the underlying economic and financial factors that link them.

It’s kind of like painting. The outcome of the work is something that appears simple to anyone observing it, but that simplicity masks the complexity within.

BlackRock’s model portfolio solutions make a big positive difference in people’s lives. I think that is rewarding.

US Retail Disclosure (For Retail Use Only):

For Retail Use Only.

Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal.

This material is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. The opinions expressed may change as subsequent conditions vary. The information and opinions contained in this material are derived from proprietary and nonproprietary sources deemed by BlackRock to be reliable, are not necessarily all-inclusive and are not guaranteed as to accuracy. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the reader/ viewer.

The BlackRock model portfolios are provided for illustrative and educational purposes only. The BlackRock model portfolios do not constitute research, are not personalized investment advice or an investment recommendation from BlackRock to any client of a third party financial professional, and are intended for use only by a third party financial professional, with other information, as a resource to help build a portfolio or as an input in the development of investment advice for its own clients. The BlackRock model portfolios themselves are not funds.

BlackRock intends to allocate all or a significant percentage of the BlackRock model portfolios to funds for which it and/or its affiliates serve as investment manager and/or are compensated for services provided to the funds ('BlackRock Affiliated Funds'). Clients will indirectly bear fund expenses relating to assets allocated to funds, including BlackRock Affiliated Funds. BlackRock has an incentive to (a) select BlackRock Affiliated Funds and (b) select BlackRock Affiliated Funds with higher fees over BlackRock Affiliated Funds with lower fees.

The model portfolios are made available to financial professionals by BlackRock Fund Advisors ('BFA') or BlackRock Investment Management, LLC ('BIM'), which are registered investment advisers, or by BlackRock Investments, LLC ('BRIL'), which is the distributor of the BlackRock and iShares funds within the model portfolios. BFA, BIM and BRIL (collectively, 'BlackRock') are affiliates.

©2022 BlackRock, Inc. All rights reserved. BLACKROCK is a trademark of BlackRock, Inc., or its subsidiaries. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.