Mr. Fink, you have proven to be a very keen letter writer to the CEO over the past few years.

Why are you doing that?

Inken Schönauer

Editor in business, responsible for the financial market.

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I had the feeling that the markets were only about short-term success.

But all the ups and downs on the stock markets are not important.

There were too few voices that addressed the issue of long-term issues.

I wanted to change that.

In 2018 the letters changed.

My aim was not just to involve the shareholders, but all stakeholders, i.e. all interest groups such as employees and customers.

Only then can a company be sustainably successful.

Doesn't sound that revolutionary at all.

You're right.

I am really a staunch capitalist, but we have restricted ourselves to the short-term thinking of shareholders for too long.

That is not sustainable.

So now we are in the middle of the sustainability debate, in which the financial industry, of all things, is supposed to play a key role.

As the head of the world's largest asset manager, it is not for nothing that you write to the CEOs.

It's hard to believe that the financial industry, of all things, has recently tried to save the world.

Where did all the wolves on Wall Street go?

Don't worry, unfortunately there are still plenty of them.

And everyone else save the world.

Like Blackrock.

I don't think we're going to save the world.

That is not our job either.

What then?

I am committed to the environment.

As an investor, however, it is my responsibility to maximize my clients' returns.

But that only works if companies position themselves in such a way that they are equipped for the future.

Those who do not face the problem of climate change today have no future.

The companies understand that, but above all the investors have understood that too.

The financial industry, like it or not, is pretty good at driving solutions when it sees a problem.

I am not sure that all companies have really internalized it that way.

There are many who have to translate their words into deeds.

There is already so much data and analytical methods that underpin how important the transition is.

Can you give me an example?

I can tell you that there is a lot of discussion.

How are they managed?

We use data to get to the heart of the problem: climate risks are investment risks.

That is why we have also invested in a number of data companies.

We can show our clients what happens if they don't face the problem in their portfolios.

We can present that very concretely.

So is the debate about sustainability ultimately just a debate about risks?

Not only, but from the point of view of an asset manager, the issue must first be seen through the lens of risk, yes.

Your letters or speeches, as they are now at the G20 summit in Venice, will be read and heard.

But how big is its influence really?

As asset managers, we are the link between investor and company.

We don't decide ourselves where money goes, especially since it's not ours, but that of our customers.

I cannot invest the money where I might want it, but only where the customer wants it.

If a customer of yours wants to invest in the Dax, but is peppered with companies that don't care about sustainability, then you still have to invest in the Dax.

That's true. But if we show the customer a portfolio that - with the help of our data - shows sustainable companies that have much more potential, then they may no longer invest in the Dax. At the same time, the companies in the Dax will feel the pressure to change, otherwise they will lose their investors. It is already happening and it will accelerate.