BlackRock Kelso comes from a stellar lineage. The investment firm was formed, of course, by investment management giant BlackRock and private equity firm Kelso & Company. BlackRock Kelso invests in middle-market companies with revenues between $50 million and $1 billion. It has a current investment portfolio of about 50 companies with a total value of more than $850 million; its investments come from a variety of industries and include American Safety Razor, DynaVox, and MedQuist. Since its founding, the firm has completed about 115 investments and provided more than $2 billion in capital. The Virginia Retirement System is its largest shareholder, owning one-third of the company's stock.