Company Press Release

iShares Launches Two New Dividend Equity ETFs

Funds seek to address need for investment income, with access to dividend-paying companies in emerging markets and Asia/Pacific developed markets

SAN FRANCISCO -- February 24, 2012 - BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE: BLK) today announced that its iShares® Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) business, the world's largest manager of ETFs, has launched two new dividend-focused equity funds designed to access the fast-growing emerging markets and Asia/Pacific developed markets. Listed on the NYSE Arca, the funds are the iShares Emerging Market Dividend Index Fund (DVYE) and the iShares Asia/Pacific Dividend 30 Index Fund (NYSEArca: DVYA).

The launch of these funds expands the existing suite of iShares dividend ETFs with the goal of delivering a global tool kit of equity income solutions. iShares launched the first US-listed dividend ETF (NYSEArca: DVY) in 2003; the fund currently has over $10 billion in assets1.

"In today's market environment, traditional sources of income are offering historically low yields," said Darek Wojnar, Head of iShares Product Development and Management at BlackRock. "Emerging markets and the developed markets in the Asia/Pacific region are expected to lead global economic growth and offer attractive opportunity for investment income in the near term. Income-seeking investors can use our dividend–paying funds to efficiently take advantage of potential economic growth in these regions, and possibly reduce portfolio volatility compared with growth-oriented stocks."

"The new iShares funds are well positioned to marry international growth potential with the value characteristics of dividend solutions in an ETF," Wojnar said. "The funds also offer investors the added benefit of a liquid investment approach, representing flexibility in establishing and adjusting allocations. A basket of high dividend-paying equities can often provide investors a cost-effective, transparent way to diversify their global equity income stream."

The iShares Emerging Market Dividend Index Fund is benchmarked to the Dow Jones Emerging Market Select Dividend Index. The index offers exposure to 100 dividend-paying emerging market companies, weighted by indicated annual yield. The top sector holdings are Telecomm (17.3%), Industrials (15.9%), and Basic Materials (14.9%).

The iShares Asia/Pacific Dividend 30 Index Fund is benchmarked to the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index. The index offers exposure to 30 dividend-paying companies in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore, weighted by indicated annual yield. The top sector holdings are Financials (24.02%), Consumer Services (16.2%) and Telecomm (17.78%).

About BlackRock: BlackRock is a leader in investment management, risk management and advisory services for institutional and retail clients worldwide. At December 31, 2011, BlackRock’s AUM was $3.513 trillion. BlackRock offers products that span the risk spectrum to meet clients’ needs, including active, enhanced and index strategies across markets and asset classes. Products are offered in a variety of structures including separate accounts, mutual funds, iShares® (exchange-traded funds), and other pooled investment vehicles. BlackRock also offers risk management, advisory and enterprise investment system services to a broad base of institutional investors through BlackRock Solutions®. Headquartered in New York City, as of December 31, 2011, the firm has approximately 10,100 employees in 27 countries and a major presence in key global markets, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East and Africa. For additional information, please visit the Company's website at www.blackrock.com

About iShares: iShares is the global product leader in exchange traded funds with over 500 funds globally across equities, fixed income and commodities, which trade on 20 exchanges worldwide. The iShares Funds are bought and sold like common stocks on securities exchanges. The iShares Funds are attractive to many individual and institutional investors and financial intermediaries because of their relative low cost, tax efficiency and trading flexibility. Investors can purchase and sell shares through any brokerage firm, financial advisor, or online broker, and hold the funds in any type of brokerage account. The iShares customer base consists of the institutional segment of pension plans and fund managers, as well as the retail segment of financial advisors and high net worth individuals.

Contacts:

Christine Hudacko
415-670-2687
christine.hudacko@blackrock.com

Carefully consider the funds' investment objectives, risk factors, and charges and expenses before investing. This and other information can be found in the funds' prospectuses, which may be obtained by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) or by visiting www.iShares.com. Read the prospectus carefully before investing. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal.

In addition to the normal risks associated with investing, international investments may involve risk of capital loss from unfavorable fluctuation in currency values, from differences in generally accepted accounting principles or from economic or political instability in other nations. Emerging markets involve heightened risks related to the same factors as well as increased volatility and lower trading volume. Narrowly focused investments typically exhibit higher volatility. There is no guarantee that dividends will be paid. Diversification may not protect against market risk.

Holdings are subject to change.

This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events or a guarantee of future results. This information should not be relied upon by the reader as research or investment advice regarding the funds or any security in particular.

The strategies discussed are strictly for illustrative and educational purposes and should not be construed as a recommendation to purchase or sell, or an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security. There is no guarantee that any strategies discussed will be effective.

Transactions in shares of the iShares Funds will result in brokerage commissions and will generate tax consequences. iShares Funds are obliged to distribute portfolio gains to shareholders. Shares of the iShares Funds may be sold throughout the day on the exchange through any brokerage account. However, shares may only be redeemed directly from a Fund by Authorized Participants, in very large creation/redemption units. There can be no assurance that an active trading market for shares of an ETF will develop or be maintained.

The iShares Funds ("Funds") are distributed by SEI Investments Distribution Co. ("SEI"). BlackRock Fund Advisors ("BFA") serves as the investment advisor to the Funds. BlackRock Investments, LLC ("BRIL"), assists in the marketing of the Funds. BFA and BRIL are affiliates of BlackRock, Inc., none of which is affiliated with SEI.

The iShares Funds are not sponsored, endorsed, issued, sold or promoted by Dow Jones Trademark Holdings, LLC, nor does this company make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in the Funds. Neither SEI, nor BlackRock Institutional Trust Company, N.A., nor any of their affiliates, are affiliated with the company listed above.

1BlackRock 2/22/12
* Not FDIC Insured * No Bank Guarantee * May Lose Value

Company Press Release

DOW JONES INDEXES TO LICENSE TWO DIVIDEND INDEXES FOR NEW iSHARES ETFs

  Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index and Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index To Serve as the Basis for iShares ETFs to Trade on NYSE Arca

  NEW YORK (February 24, 2012) — Dow Jones Indexes today announced that iShares has licensed the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index and the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index to serve as the basis for two new iShares ETFs.

  The ETFs -- the iShares Emerging Markets Dividend Index Fund and the iShares Asia/Pacific Dividend 30 Index Fund -- begin trading today on NYSE Arca.

                      The Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index is designed to measure the stock performance of 100 leading dividend-paying emerging markets companies, selected by dividend yield. At the time of its November 2011 launch, Dow Jones Indexes announced the index would be licensed to underlie the iShares Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend ETF, listed on the London Stock Exchange.

  Launched in 2006, the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index is designed to measure the performance of 30 top stocks by dividend yield in the Asia/Pacific region, which includes Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore. The Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index is also licensed to serve as the basis for seven other iShares ETFs, all of which trade on European exchanges.

  “The licensing of the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index and the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index by iShares underscores the continued demand for Dow Jones Indexes’ inventory of global dividend gauges,” said Michael A. Petronella, President, Dow Jones Indexes.

  Dow Jones Indexes, a leading global index provider, pioneered the dividend-index space with the launch of the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index in 2003, and since that time has expanded its dividend-index offerings to include a full suite of country- and region-specific measures. In September 2011, the company unveiled Europe and Eurozone Dividend Indexes, as well as distributing versions of dividend indexes for Europe, Eurozone, Germany and France.

  For details on methodology, please click here for the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index and here for the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index.

  # # #  

Journalists may direct questions regarding this press release to:

  Rich Silverman
+1 212 299 2414
richard.silverman@djindexes.com

  About Dow Jones Indexes

Dow Jones Indexes (www.djindexes.com) is a leading full-service index provider that develops, maintains and licenses indexes for use as benchmarks and as the basis of investment products. Best-known for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Dow Jones Indexes offers more than 130,000 equity indexes as well as fixed-income and alternative indexes, including measures of hedge funds, commodities and real estate. Dow Jones Indexes employs clear, unbiased and systematic methodologies that are fully integrated within index families. Dow Jones Indexes is part of a joint venture company owned 90 percent by CME Group Inc. (www.cmegroup.com) and 10 percent by Dow Jones & Company, Inc. (www.dowjones.com), a News Corporation company (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV;  www.newscorp.com).

  Real and historical index data is available for the indexes.  All estimated daily historical closing prices prior to the initial publication date of any index listed above are based on back-testing (i.e., calculations of how the index might have performed in the past if it had existed). Back-tested performance information is purely hypothetical and is solely for informational purposes. Back-tested performance does not represent actual performance, and past performance is not indicative of future results.

  “Dow Jones®”, “Dow Jones Indexes”, “Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index”, “Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 30 Index” and all other index names listed above are service marks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (“Dow Jones”), and have been licensed for use by CME Group Index Services LLC (“CME Indexes”). Investment products based on these indexes are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Dow Jones, CME Indexes or their respective affiliates and none of Dow Jones, CME Indexes and their respective affiliates make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in such products. Inclusion of a company in any of these indexes does not in any way reflect an opinion of Dow Jones, CME Indexes or any of their respective affiliates on the investment merits of such company. None of Dow Jones, CME Indexes or any of their respective affiliates is providing investment advice in connection with these indexes.