SEC Charges BlackRock with Failing to Properly Disclose Investments by Publicly Traded Fund it Advised

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged BlackRock Advisors, LLC, an investment adviser, for failing to accurately describe investments in the entertainment industry that comprised a significant portion of a publicly traded fund it advised. To settle the charges, BlackRock agreed to pay a $2.5 million penalty. The SEC’s order finds that, from 2015 to 2019, BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust (BIT) made significant investments, through a lending facility, in Aviron Group, LLC, a company that developed print and advertising plans for one to two films per year. According to the SEC’s order, in many of BIT’s annual and semi-annual reports that were publicly available to investors and filed with the SEC, BlackRock inaccurately described Aviron as a “Diversified Financial Services” company.