Lee Kranefuss, who built iShares into an ETF juggernaut, plans to stay with BlackRock for "several months" and then move on, according to a company insider.

Kranefuss was not immediately available for comment.

Lee Kranefuss iShares Vice Chairman

The iShares vice chairman will be spend the remainder of his time at BlackRock assisting Mike Latham, CEO of iShares US, and Rory Torbin, CEO of iShares Europe. BlackRock purchased iShares and the rest of Barclays Global Investors in a deal that closed last December.

Kranefuss' plans should not come as a surprise to industry insiders. In April of last year, Kranefuss, then-CEO of Barclays Global Investors' iShares business, moved into the role of non-executive chairman. The change took place when Barclays announced an agreement to sell iShares to Blue Sparkle, a limited partnership formed by private equity firm CVC Capital Partners.

A few weeks after the Blue Sparkle deal was unveiled, Kranefuss told The MFWire: "We're working out what the exact roles and titles will be when the deal closes. I intend to stay with the business."

Later in the year, Kranefuss' title changed to vice chairman.

In June, BlackRock inked a deal to buy all of Barclays Global Investors, not just iShares. The $15.2 billion deal closed December 1. 

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