What iShares does

iShares is the exchange-traded fund brand of BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), founded in 2000 and headquartered in San Francisco. It is the largest ETF provider globally, offering more than 350 US-listed ETFs spanning equity, fixed income, digital assets, commodities, real estate, and multi-asset strategies. The product range spans ultra-low-cost core equity funds such as IVV (S&P 500, over $500B AUM) and sector/thematic offerings including semiconductors (SOXX), aerospace and defense (ITA), AI and tech (ARTY, IGM), and power infrastructure (POWR), as well as fixed income (SGOV, LQD, MUB), commodity trusts (IAU, SLV), international and emerging markets (IXUS, EEM/IEMG), and digital-asset products (IBIT spot Bitcoin, ETHA/ETHB Ethereum, and the new covered-call BITA income fund).

The underlying technology is index-based ETF tracking — optimized or full-replication sampling of third-party benchmarks (S&P, MSCI, Bloomberg, iBoxx) — packaged in a registered investment company structure that distributes via major brokerage platforms commission-free (Fidelity and others) and through financial advisors and institutional channels. Revenue is generated entirely through ongoing expense ratios charged on assets under management, with fee levels ranging from 0.03% on core equity to 0.75% on sector and thematic products, billed annually as a recurring subscription-style charge on AUM. Distribution is predominantly channel-based: online brokerages for retail, and RIAs, broker-dealers, and wealth platforms for financial advisors and institutions — covering individual investors, financial advisors, and institutional investors as the three primary customer segments. The franchise is fully backed by BlackRock's $11.5+ trillion AUM platform, with no separate independent ownership or funding structure.

Name

iShares

Legal name

iShares by BlackRock

Website

https://ishares.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

iShares is BlackRock's ETF brand offering 350+ US-listed exchange-traded funds across equity, fixed income, digital assets, commodities, and real estate. It serves individual investors, financial advisors, and institutions via commission-free brokerage platforms, earning revenue through expense ratios on managed assets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF) Asset Management

NAICS

Open-End Investment Funds (525910), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector & Industry Equity ETFs (FSAAAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Style/Factor Equity ETFs (Value, Growth, Quality, Low Vol, Momentum) (FSAAAFAB), Real Assets & Infrastructure ETFs (REITs, Infrastructure, Natural Resources) (FSAAAFAH), Index-Tracking Funds, ETPs & Structured Index Products (Crypto) (FSADAHAC)

Keywords

• Exchange traded funds
• Index investing
• Asset management
• Portfolio building
• ETF investing

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. ETF Management Fees: iShares generates revenue through expense ratios charged on ETF assets under management. Different funds have varying expense ratios, ranging from 0.03% to 0.75% depending on the fund type and strategy.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

iShares is BlackRock's ETF brand offering 350+ U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds across equity, fixed income, digital assets, commodities, real estate, and multi-asset categories. Products range from low-cost core index ETFs (e.g., IVV, ITOT) to sector and thematic ETFs (e.g., SOXX, ITA, ARTY), actively managed income ETFs with covered call overlays (e.g., BALI, BITA), and spot digital asset trusts (IBIT, ETHA/ETHB). Funds are distributed commission-free through major brokerages and financial advisor channels.

Product overview

iShares is a leading ETF provider by BlackRock offering over 350+ U.S. exchange-traded funds across multiple asset classes. The product portfolio includes: (1) Core Equity ETFs for broad market exposure (IVV, ITOT, IWM, IWO); (2) Thematic/Sector ETFs targeting specific industries (SOXX, IGM, ITA, IYT, IYW, IGV); (3) Fixed Income ETFs covering the bond spectrum (MUB, LQD, IGSB, IGLB, SGOV, TLT); (4) Digital Asset products including spot Bitcoin (IBIT) and Ethereum (ETHA/ETHB) trusts, plus the new covered-call Bitcoin income product (BITA); (5) Commodity trusts for gold (IAU/IAUM) and silver (SLV); (6) International Equity ETFs (IXUS, EEM, IEMG, EWY, FXI, INDY); (7) Real Estate ETFs (IYR, REET, IDGT); and (8) Active/Thematic strategies (BALI, BINC, THRO, ARTY, BAI, POWR). The funds are distributed commission-free through major brokerages like Fidelity, available to purchase through brokerage accounts or with a financial advisor.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) Tracks the S&P 500 Index to provide broad U.S. large-cap equity exposure for retail and institutional investors; over $500 billion in AUM.
• iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) Provides exposure to 25+ semiconductor companies including Nvidia for investors targeting the semiconductor industry.
• iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) Offers diversified exposure across 12 technology sub-sectors with 296 stocks, including major AI players such as Nvidia, Broadcom, Alphabet, and Apple.
• iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) Provides exposure to domestic aerospace and defense stocks for investors targeting that sector.
• iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) Ultra-short duration U.S. Treasury ETF with approximately $96 billion AUM, offering yield without duration risk as a cash alternative.
• iShares US Large Cap Premium Income Active ETF (BALI) Actively managed covered call strategy ETF targeting large-cap U.S. equities with a 7.7% yield for income-oriented investors.
• iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF (BITA) New covered call strategy product based on spot Bitcoin infrastructure that provides monthly option premiums and Bitcoin exposure for income-oriented digital asset investors.
• iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) Spot Bitcoin ETF holding approximately $63 billion in Bitcoin, the world's largest Bitcoin ETP, providing direct exposure to Bitcoin price for retail and institutional investors.
• iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) Seeks exposure to ether plus potential staking rewards, providing investors with both spot Ethereum price exposure and yield from staking activities.
• iShares Gold Trust (IAU/IAUM) Physical gold-backed trusts offering exposure to gold prices, with IAUM being the lower-cost micro-share version of IAU.
• iShares Silver Trust (SLV) Physical silver-backed ETF holding LBMA-grade silver bullion in JPMorgan London vaults to provide silver price exposure.
• iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS) Broad international exposure to developed and emerging markets outside the U.S. with $58.6 billion AUM for global diversification.
• iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM/IEMG) Provides emerging markets exposure, with EEM as the higher-cost version and IEMG as the lower-cost core alternative.
• iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO) Provides exposure to small-cap growth companies with $15.1 billion in assets under management.
• iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF (IYR) Provides exposure to U.S. real estate investment trusts for sector-specific real estate allocation.
• iShares National Muni Bond ETF (MUB) Provides federally tax-exempt municipal bond income exposure for tax-conscious fixed income investors.
• iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD) Provides investment-grade U.S. corporate bond exposure with broad diversification across issuers.
• iShares Future AI & Tech ETF (ARTY) Targets the $1.8 trillion generative AI market with exposure across the full AI value chain for thematic AI investing.
• iShares U.S. Power Infrastructure ETF (POWR) Provides access to public companies involved in U.S. power infrastructure for thematic infrastructure exposure.
• iShares Top 20 US Stocks ETF (TOPT) Provides concentrated exposure to the 20 largest U.S. stocks, capturing mega-cap market concentration for investors seeking concentrated large-cap exposure.

Quantifiable outcome

• ETFs held 30% of US managed fund assets but accounted for less than 1% of capital gains distributions in 2025
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BlackRockcoreOthersiShares is a brand of BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager with $11.5+ trillion in AUM. BlackRock provides the expert portfolio and risk management that powers all iShares funds.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iShares
• Facebookfacebook.com/iShares
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ishares

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about iShares