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Finance

The Anti-ESG Crusader Who Wants to Pick a Fight With BlackRock

Vivek Ramaswamy, co-founder of Strive Asset Management, is a vocal critic of the hot Wall Street investing trend that Republicans such as Ron DeSantis say promotes a liberal agenda.

It was smiles all around as the familiar Wall Street ritual—the ringing of the closing bell—played out again at the New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 10. But this was no ordinary photo op.

As the bell clanged and cheers went up, the figure in the center, Vivek Ramaswamy, was visibly delighted. A wealthy biotech entrepreneur turned anti-“woke” evangelist, he’s at the vanguard of a new conservative movement—one that’s bringing America’s political divisions to the money-loving heart of Wall Street.