The two biggest issues facing the U.S. that don’t get discussed enough are the nation’s retirement system and mounting federal government debt, according to BlackRock Chair and CEO Larry Fink.
Millions of Americans don’t have retirement savings and are frightened that they won’t be able to save enough to retire with dignity, Fink said Oct. 21 at the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association’s annual meeting in New York. "We as a country refuse to talk about, 'Do we have the adequate retirement system in place for most Americans?'" he said.
Fink, leader of the nation’s largest asset manager, which reported a record $11.5 trillion in assets under management earlier this month, made a similar point in his annual letter to investors released in March. In that letter, he said "America needs an organized, high-level effort to ensure that future generations can live out their final years with dignity.”
A BlackRock survey released last month found that 9 out of 10 registered voters agreed that there’s “a retirement savings crisis in America,” with roughly three-quarters anticipating not being able to maintain their standard of living in retirement or cover long-term-care costs such as nursing home expenses.
With respect to Social Security, Fink said Americans would be better served if the trust fund’s assets were invested in the stock market.
“The foundation of retirement in the United States is Social Security,” he said. “But if that money was put into equities instead of just a debt obligation, most Americans would be a lot better off over the last 50 years.”
Fink, who was interviewed on stage by SIFMA’s President and CEO Kenneth Bentsen Jr., said more public discussion is needed on ways to improve participation in the retirement system so more Americans can comfortably retire.
The other issue that Fink said needs greater scrutiny is the federal government’s nearly $36 trillion debt.
He lamented that neither presidential candidate is discussing the debt on the campaign trail, and both are running on policies that economist expect to raise the debt.
According to Fink, the nation’s capital markets are crucial to reducing the debt.
“The only way we can tackle this deficit is to grow the economy above trend line, and the only way we’re going to be able to grow the economy above trend line is to unlock capitalism,” he said. “Through the capital markets, we can be really accelerating investments in infrastructure and AI (artificial intelligence).”
