BlackRock's push into European pensions: myth or reality?

BlackRock is swallowing European pensions: is this the end of the welfare state?

Should we antiestéticar that BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, will end up controlling pensions across half of Europe? A certain alarm is spreading in economic forums, but a cooler analysis tones down the drama. The key lies in who really wields force.

BlackRock's power: giant or puppet?

BlackRock and Vanguard manage trillions of dollars, but it is worth remembering that, ultimately, they are economic agents of the United States. As seen during the pandemic, when Washington did not hesitate to bail out and nationalize companies, the power of force remains the monopoly of states. The argument that the military leadership awaits orders from large corporations is, at the very least, naive.

The state is still the master of the game

Those who see in BlackRock the shadow of a new order often forget that the greatest economic power is held by the state itself, which manages around 50% of GDP backed by its monopoly on violence, on the legislative, the executive and the judiciary. Without that coercive backing, no corporate power can stand. So before antiestéticaring BlackRock, we should ask ourselves whether European governments would allow their pension systems to fall into foreign hands.

The conspiracy paradox

The irony is that the antiestéticar of BlackRock controlling European pensions presupposes a weakness of the state that does not match reality. If the last financial crisis and the pandemic proved anything, it is that the state remains the lender of last resort and the one that, when necessary, nationalizes. BlackRock has no tanks. The apocalyptic narrative of a Europe sold off to investment funds clashes with the simple fact that no government will surrender its sovereignty without resistance.