Ernest O'Neal

BlackRock Advisors LLC is a SEC-registered investment advisor and mutual fund manager headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1994 and is a subsidiary of BlackRock Capital Holdings, Inc., ultimately held by BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE: BLK). BlackRock Advisors manages assets for US-registered investment companies and 529 Plans.

In 1915 Charles Edward Merrill founded Merrill Lynch & Co. (NYSE: MER) with Edmund C. Lynch in Baltimore, Maryland. The modern Merrill Lynch was formed in 1940 through mergers with E.A. Pierce & Cassatt and, soon after, Fenner & Beane. In 1973, Merrill Lynch adopted a holding company format, with Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. as the parent and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as the operating subsidiary. Merrill Lynch Asset Management, Inc. (MLAM) was created as an integral business unit in the Merrill Lynch family in 1976. Fund Asset Management, doing business as Mercury Asset Management, was acquired in December 1997. In 2000, MLAM and Mercury were combined under the name Merrill Lynch Investment Managers. MLAM manages the Merrill Lynch family of mutual funds, as and acts as sub-advisor to other mutual funds.

Merrill Lynch Canada, Inc. is a Canadian broker/dealer headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. They are a subsidiary of Midland Walwyn, Inc. and their ultimate parent is Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC). The firm offers brokerage and investment banking services as well as commercial lending, global high-yield debt, global equity, and M&A services to institutional and retail clients.

The Water Co. LLC provides water treatment technology services. The firm specializes in in capacitive deionization and nano-materials for water treatment. It uses an electrical separation system for reducing contaminants and impurities from water known as capacitive deionization that does not require chemicals and generates no secondary waste stream. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Pueblo, CO.

The Group's principal activities are to provide investment, financing, advisory, insurance and related products and services on a global basis. The Group's services includes securities brokerage, trading, insurance, record keeping and underwriting through its broker, dealer, banking, insurance and other financial services subsidiaries. The Group operates in three business segments: Global Markets and Investment Banking group, Global Private Client, and Merrill Lynch Investment Managers. The principal subsidiary of the Group is Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., which provides securities brokerage, option contracts, commodity and financial futures contracts, selected insurance products, options, corporate and municipal securities, investment banking and business advisory services. The Group operates in Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Pacific Rim, Canada and Latin America. In 2005, the Group acquired Pax Clearing Corp, the advest Group and Amvescap Plc.

Lighthouse Holdings, Inc. provides marketing services. The firm services include business consulting, brand development, promotion, direct marketing, and event management. The company was founded by Terence M. Graunke and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center operates as a private cancer center. It offers cancer care services to adult; and child and teen patients. Its services include risk assessment and screening; diagnosis and treatment; clinical trials; patient and caregiver education; and pediatric clinical trials. The company was founded by John J. Astor and Charlotte Astor in 1884 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Council on Foreign Relations, Inc. provides and disseminates ideas on foreign policies to individuals, corporate members, journalists and policy makers. It operates a forum for government officials, students and other interested parties to study and discuss world issues and impact on American foreign policies. The company publishes Foreign Affairs, a magazine that comes out six times a year, along with books and studies by its own scholars. Council on Foreign Relations was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in New York City, NY.

The Partnership for New York City operates as a charitable organization. It is a network of business leaders and corporations working for the economic and cultural betterment of all five boroughs of the city. The firm provides networking opportunities, conducts research, participates in policy making and lobbies government. The company was founded by David Rockefeller in 2002 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Center for Strategic & International Studies, Inc. provides strategic insights & policy solutions to decision makers in government, international institutions, the private sector, and civil society. Its projects focus on areas such as AIDS, arms control, conflict resolution, NATO, the environment, immigration, intelligence, trade, health care, OPEC, space policy, and terrorism. The company was founded in 1962 by David M. Abshire and Admiral Arleigh Burke and is headquartered in Washington, DC.

The Economic Club of New York operates as a nonprofit, nonpartisan and nonpolitical organization. The company was founded by J.W. Beatson in 1907 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Arconic Defense, Inc. is engaged in the provision of land, sea, and air defense solutions for the Armed Forces of the United States. It offers forgings, sheets and plate, aluminum powder, aluminum investment castings, fasteners, hard alloy extrusions, mill products, and engineered products. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Washington, MO.

Arconic Corp. engages in manufacturing aluminum sheet, plate, extrusions and architectural products. It operates through the following business segments: Rolled Products, Extrusions, and Building and Construction Systems. The Rolled Products segment involves the production of finished goods ranging from airframes and automotive body panels to industrial plate and brazing sheet. The Extrusions segment produces extruded products, including aerospace shapes automotive shapes, seamless tubes, hollows, mortar fins and high strength rods and bars. The Building and Construction Systems segment manufactures differentiated products and building envelope solutions, including entrances, curtain walls, windows, composite panels, and coil coated sheets. The company was founded on August 14, 2019 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA.

Part of Hut 8 Corp., U.S. Data Mining Group, Inc. is a data mining company based in Miami, FL. U.S. Data Mining Group, Inc. was founded by Asher Genoot and Michael Ho. The CEO is Michael Ho. U.S. Data Mining Group was acquired by Hut 8 Mining Corp. on November 30, 2023 for $87.56 million.

Grain Management LLC (Grain Management) is a private equity firm founded in 2007 by David Grain. The firm is headquartered in Washington, Columbia.