BlackRock Expands Liquid Alternatives Offering with Multi-Strategy Active ETF

Seeks to deliver diversified exposure to alternative strategies aiming for total return, powered by BlackRock’s 40-year Systematic investing expertise

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, BlackRock bolstered its liquid alternative platform with the launch of the iShares Systematic Alternatives Active ETF (Nasdaq:IALT), a multi-strategy alternative fund designed to deliver differentiated sources of return across market cycles through the transparency and convenience of an ETF. BlackRock is the largest provider of liquid alternative strategies in the U.S., capturing over 50% of inflows year-to-date.¹

IALT aims to deliver absolute returns across market cycles with a lower correlation to traditional markets through a multi-asset approach that blends BlackRock's competitive alpha-seeking streams across various liquid alternative strategies such as equity market neutral, diversified bonds and managed futures. The Fund leverages a breadth of data sources to assess thousands of securities in near real time, dynamically recalibrating the portfolio to adjust to market conditions.

Fund Name	Ticker	Portfolio Managers	Benchmark
iShares Systematic Alternatives Active ETF	IALT	Raffaele Savi, Jeff Rosenberg, Richard Mathieson, and Stephanie Lee	ICE BofA 3-Month U.S. Benchmark Treasury Bill Index

“In an environment characterized by high market concentrations, elevated valuations and volatility, and more positive stock-bond correlations, investors are increasingly seeking new ways to build diversified portfolios that can withstand uncertainty while managing liquidity,” said Raffaele Savi, Global Head of BlackRock Systematic. “Resilience demands adaptability – IALT’s systematic approach provides access to unique sources of potential return at scale, making it a versatile tool for investors and portfolio builders aiming to diversify, manage risk, and pursue growth.”

Managed by the seasoned team behind flagship liquid alternative strategies like the BlackRock Global Equity Market Neutral Fund (BDMIX) and the BlackRock Systematic Multi-Strategy Fund (BIMBX), IALT draws on the deep capabilities of BlackRock’s $378 billion Systematic investment platform.² BlackRock Systematic combines human insight with advanced data analytics, leveraging AI and Large Language Models, to pursue consistent and repeatable alpha across a spectrum of strategies from enhanced, benchmark-aware return strategies to low-correlation, pure alpha hedge funds.

“IALT represents a strategic evolution of BlackRock’s liquid alternative offering, expanding access to a segment that was once exclusive to institutional investors,” said Jessica Tan, Head of Americas for Global Product Solutions at BlackRock. “IALT combines BlackRock Systematic’s 40-year legacy of alpha generation with the full breadth of BlackRock’s ETF capabilities in seeking to help more people invest better.”

With over $5 trillion in assets across its global ETF platform, including more than $100 billion in active ETFs, BlackRock remains committed to expanding investor choice amid today’s evolving market dynamics. As active ETFs continue to gain momentum, BlackRock projects that global assets in this category will more than quadruple to $4.2 trillion by 2030, highlighting their growing role in modern portfolio construction.

About BlackRock

BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate | Twitter: @blackrock | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/blackrock

About iShares

iShares unlocks opportunity across markets to meet the evolving needs of investors. With more than twenty years of experience, a global line-up of approximately 1,700 exchange traded funds (ETFs) and approximately $5.2 trillion in assets under management as of September 30, 2025, iShares continues to drive progress for the financial industry. iShares funds are powered by the expert portfolio and risk management of BlackRock.

Carefully consider the Funds' investment objectives, risk factors, and charges and expenses before investing. This and other information can be found in the Funds' prospectuses or, if available, the summary prospectuses which may be obtained by visiting www.iShares.com or www.blackrock.com. Read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal.

This information should not be relied upon as research, investment advice, or a recommendation regarding any products, strategies, or any security in particular. This material is strictly for illustrative, educational, or informational purposes and is subject to change.

Actively managed funds do not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index, may have higher portfolio turnover, and may charge higher fees than index funds due to increased trading and research expenses. There is no guarantee that an active fund will meet its investment objective.

Alpha is a measure of performance on a risk-adjusted basis. Alpha takes the volatility (price risk) of a mutual fund and compares its risk-adjusted performance to a benchmark index. The excess return of the fund relative to the return of the benchmark index is a fund's alpha. Diversification and asset allocation may not protect against market risk or loss of principal.

Alternative investments present the opportunity for significant losses and some alternative investments have experienced periods of extreme volatility. Alternative investments may be less liquid than investments in traditional securities.

The iShares Funds are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by ICE Data Indices, LLC. nor does this company make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in the Funds. BlackRock is not affiliated with ICE Data Indices, LLC.

Prepared by BlackRock Investments, LLC, member FINRA.

© 2025 BlackRock, Inc. or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved. BLACKROCK and iSHARES are trademarks of BlackRock, Inc. or its affiliates. All other trademarks are those of their respective owners.

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^1 BlackRock, Morningstar as of 10/31/2025. BlackRock is the largest provider of liquid alternative strategies, based on the AUM size of US-domiciled Open-End Funds within the Morningstar US Category Group: Alternative excluding Fund of Funds, Feeder, and Money Market Funds. Net Flows based on the US-domiciled Open-End Funds within the Morningstar US Category Group: Alternative excluding Fund of Funds, Feeder, and Money Market Fund and calculated by BlackRock.

^2 BlackRock, as of September 30, 2025.