BlackRock Breaks Wall Street Ranks With Planned Racial Audit (1)

BlackRock Inc. is breaking ranks with peers on Wall Street by doing a deep dive into its business to see how it may have contributed to racial inequities in the financial system.

The world’s largest money manager plans to undergo an independent racial audit of its operations, following a request from a shareholder. Companies including Airbnb Inc. and Facebook Inc. have taken similar steps in the past few years.

By contrast, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. are asking shareholders to vote against proposals calling on them to do such audits, saying they’ve already taken ...