- Digital currencies could get a boost from Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said.
- "The war will prompt countries to re-evaluate their currency dependencies," he wrote in a letter on Thursday.
- BlackRock is studying digital currencies and stablecoins because of client interest, he said.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine could accelerate the use of digital currencies as a way to settle international payments, according to BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink.
Given that both countries are major suppliers of commodities such as wheat, steel, natural gas and fertilizer, subsequent sanctions responses have led to fears of disruptions to global supply chains.
But what is still up for debate is the "brutal" invasion's potential impact on accelerating digital currencies, Fink, chairman and CEO of the $10 trillion asset manager, said in a letter to shareholders on Thursday.
"The war will prompt countries to re-evaluate their currency dependencies," he wrote. "Even before the war, several governments were looking to play a more active role in digital currencies and define the regulatory frameworks under which they operate."
The Federal Reserve earlier this year laid out a study on the potential benefits and risks of fully digitizing the US dollar, but avoided taking a side for or against the idea. A Fed-backed digital dollar is largely expected to provide many of the benefits touted by cryptocurrencies, without their wild price swings or high transaction fees.
"A global digital payment system, thoughtfully designed, can enhance the settlement of international transactions while reducing the risk of money laundering and corruption," Fink wrote.
Using digital currencies can also lower costs of cross-border payments, such as when expats wish to send money home to their families, he added.
Due to client interest, BlackRock is studying how it can make use of digital currencies, stablecoins, and blockchain technology. About a year ago, Fink said BlackRock clients have shown little interest in cryptocurrencies.
Separately in the letter, he said Russia's war marks an end to the era of globalization that has characterized the last three decades.
Its aggressive invasion will push "companies and governments worldwide to re-evaluate their dependencies and re-analyze their manufacturing and assembly footprints – something that Covid had already spurred many to start doing," he said.
Hard-hitting sanctions levied against Russia have upended commodity markets, casting an even thicker layer of uncertainty on what economies already saw as an unsure economic and financial market outlook.
Fink pointed to several companies, including BlackRock, moving to "self-sanction" Russia even without being forced to. Access to global capital markets is a "privilege, not a right," he wrote.
"Over the past few weeks, I've spoken to countless stakeholders, including our clients and employees, who are all looking to understand what could be done to prevent capital from being deployed to Russia," he said.
After BlackRock suspended the purchase of all Russian securities this month, the asset manager's total client exposure to the country fell to less than $1 billion from $18 billion since February.
"This 'economic war' shows what we can achieve when companies, supported by their stakeholders, come together in the face of violence and aggression," Fink said.
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