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BlackRock Is Ready for Big Pound Move. Direction Not Applicable

  • Fund buys pound-dollar straddle to position for volatility
  • Brexit is top risk to portfolios, BlackRock’s Thiel says
Sterling Currency As Forecasters Catch Up With Rally
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Updated on

BlackRock Inc. is all set to profit should the pound surge. Or sink.

The world’s largest money manager is convinced sterling’s next big move is just around the corner as Brexit negotiations come to a head, but which way it will swing hinges entirely on the end result. As a one-sided bet could just as well backfire as it may profit, BlackRock has bought itself an option straddle, a strategy that profits on a sharp shift either way in the pound-dollar pair.