Geithner Phone Pal Revealed: Larry Fink

US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner spoke with BlackRock's Larry Fink on 49 separate occasions, or about once every 11 days, during an 18-month period, reports FT.

FT goes on:

Calls and meetings with Mr Fink throughout 2011 and up to the end of June this year outnumber the combined calls and meetings with the heads of the six largest US banks by assets. Mr Geithner’s second most frequent interlocutor in the corporate world was his old boss, Robert Rubin, the former Treasury secretary now at Centerview Partners, who spoke to him 33 times in the same period. 

Mr Geithner’s calls with Mr Fink far outnumber those with executives at other investment groups such as Pimco, Fidelity, and AllianceBernstein. 

Mr Geithner’s diary, which is open for public inspection, records all official interactions, including with administration officials, bureaucratic advisers and business executives. 

It notes frequent conversations with one-time colleagues in public life, including Larry Summers and Hank Paulson, two former Treasury secretaries...The calls tallied by the Financial Times include those placed by Mr Fink as well as by Mr Geithner.

Hmm, be sure to read the Bob English post late yesterday which discusses the New York Fed-created special purpose vehicle, Maiden Lane and the awarding of a no bid sole source contract to manage Maiden Lane assets which was awarded to BlackRock.