BlackRock
Deals managed by BlackRock outshone those of most of its competitors for their performance. "They have one of the best platforms in the industry," according to one head of research at a bank. "Their deals are still performing relatively better than others' even though some have hit event of default." Last year BlackRock took on the management of eight CDOs totaling $10.3 billion. That number included two CLOs, one of which was noteworthy for having a multi-currency revolver allowing for up to 20% of the portfolio to be non-U.S. dollar denominated. In another vote of confidence, the manager has been chosen by the Federal Reserve to manage the mortgage-backed securities and hedge investments that served as collateral for the $29 billion loan to JPMorgan to acquire Bear Stearns.