<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc's <BLK.N> fourth-quarter earnings report gave investors an indication of the jolt the world's biggest asset manager may get from its move into exchange-traded funds following its December 1 acquisition of Barclays Global Investors.</p><p>Net income rose to $256 million, or $1.62 a share, from $52 million, or 39 cents a share, a year earlier.</p><p>Excluding special items, BlackRock said profit increased to $2.39 a share from 66 cents. On that basis, the results surpassed the analysts' average forecast of $2.10, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.</p><p>Revenue rose 45 percent to $1.54 billion, including $278 million in fees generated from BGI in December, the company said.</p><p>With $3.3 trillion in assets under management, BlackRock now manages more money than the entire hedge fund industry following the BGI deal.</p><p>But BlackRock also incurred $152 million in added expenses because of the transaction and the integration of the ETF business. Fourth-quarter operating expenses tallied $1.16 billion, up from $726 million a year earlier.</p><p>In acquiring BGI, New York-based BlackRock added 3,500 new employees and now has more staff in London than anywhere else in the world.</p><p>"Notwithstanding our early accomplishments, we are under no illusion: Integrations are hard and we have a great deal of work ahead," BlackRock Chief Executive Officer Laurence Fink said in the earnings release.</p><p>The company's BlackRock Solutions business took on 14 new assignments in the fourth quarter. The unit has emerged as a major advisor to the U.S. Federal Reserve on a number of government bailouts, including the controversial rescue package for American International Group.</p><p>BlackRock said the new jobs for BlackRock Solutions reflect a continued focus on risk management by investors and institutions.</p><p>(Reporting by Matthew Goldstein; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=67889289&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

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