BlackRock and Wellington Lead Institutional Brand Awareness Rankings
Nasdaq eVestment's Q1 2026 Brand Awareness Rankings, released this month, tracked more than 230,000 strategy profile reviews across 5,000 asset owner and consultant users in 56 countries. BlackRock topped both the consultant and asset owner global large-firm rankings, with Wellington Management, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and J.P. Morgan rounding out the asset owner Industry Leaders list.
On the consultant side, Fidelity, Vanguard, RBC Global Asset Management, and State Street joined BlackRock among the most recognized firms.
Hedge fund research was a standout this quarter, with Canadian institutional investors driving a record quarter of activity on the platform, extending four consecutive quarterly highs. GCC asset owners also surged earlier in the quarter before pulling back sharply in March as U.S.-Iran tensions escalated. Equity strategies continued to dominate overall research activity, with U.S. large-cap core seeing the strongest growth within that universe.
The report also reinforces a consistent finding: firms that populate their profiles thoroughly attract significantly more attention from consultants and asset owners. Several well-researched firms were excluded from the rankings entirely for failing to report firm AUM on time.
"Results like this come from focus, consistency, and a team that believes in the work," said Kelly Vives, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Allspring Global Investments, which was named an Industry Leader with its fixed income platform ranked fourth globally. Vives is an executive member of Financial Narrative and will be speaking at the upcoming Spring Forum NYC on May 12.
Get the full rankings: Nasdaq eVestment
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