Alternatives have become an insurance mainstay in recent years as the industry looks to generate yield away from the depressed traditional markets.

Of these, private assets have been one of the biggest sources of growth. BlackRock has helped insurers overcome their hurdles of investing in private assets and help understand some of the complexity of this burgeoning asset class.

Its $330bn alternatives platform enables it to access high-quality opportunities, improved transparency, integrated solutions, and a higher standard of alignment. The asset manager's capital markets division has a dedicated 60+ person team which has allowed it to be the first call on new proprietary deals.

Alongside this it has the advantage of global connectivity to banks, advisors, sponsors, corporates, and other specialists, access to repeat borrowers and deal sources which represent a large percentage of deployed capital and broad sector coverage and expertise that its resources bring.

It is all wrapped up in the company's Aladdin risk analytics platform—one of the most advanced of its kind helping insurers to understand their holdings.

In recent years, BlackRock has also been integrating ESG concerns into its alternatives business. Each BlackRock alternatives investment business unit has a detailed ESG integration statement which outlines how ESG is incorporated into the investment process for their particular asset class. The aim is to give insurers outcomes aligned with their goals.