The “Big Four” Companies that Rule the World (2024)

FAQs

What 4 companies own the world? ›

Coca-Cola Co. DuPont & Co. Exxon Mobil Corp. General Electric Co.

“In other words, these two investment companies, Vanguard and BlackRock, hold a monopoly in all industries in the world and they, in turn, are owned by the richest families in the world, some of whom are royalty and who have been very rich since before the Industrial Revolution.”

Together, BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street have nearly US$11 trillion in assets under management. That's more than all sovereign wealth funds combined and over three times the global hedge fund industry.

BlackRock has evolved from a small startup to a global conglomerate. This market giant invests in experimenting in all areas, and as a result, it owns shares and voting rights in several of Europe's largest firms, including those in energy, oil and gas, and, of course, banking.

The Government Pension Investment Fund of Japan remains the largest asset owner in the world (US$1.7 trillion) followed by the two largest sovereign wealth funds: Norges Bank Investment Management (US$1.4 trillion) and China Investment Corporation (US$1.2 trillion).

Just 37 years ago, there were 50 companies in charge of most American media. Now, 90% of the media in the United States is controlled by just six corporations: AT&T, CBS, Comcast, Disney, Newscorp and Viacom.

Walmart has been the world's largest company by revenue since 2014.

Does the US government own any companies? ›

The US government has several of these, including the passenger railroad company Amtrak, the United States Postal Service and federal mortgage corporations Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

It runs a massive technology platform that oversees at least $21.6 trillion in assets. In 1999, BlackRock started selling Aladdin, which analyses and tracks investors' portfolios and can help professional money managers spot risks. Today, it is a juggernaut widely used in the money management industry and beyond.

With 600 billion U.S. dollars in revenue, Walmart topped the ranking of the hundred largest companies globally, followed by the Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco. Walmart was also the largest company in the world based on its number of employees, with some 2.3 million all over the world.

Diversification versus competition

One of either Blackrock, Vanguard, or State Street is the largest shareholder in 88% of S&P 500 companies. They are the three largest owners of most DOW 30 companies. Overall, institutional investors (which may offer both active and passive funds) own 80% of all stock in the S&P 500.

Technology is ruling our day-to-day life. In some parlance, technology is also driving the economical growth of countries.

Apple Inc.

Topping the list of the most admired companies in the world for Fortune is Apple Inc.

The weapon companies that BlackRock promotes have been accused of groundwater contamination, misconduct, labor violations, and overinflated pricing, resulting in overbilling defense contracts issued by the federal government.

BlackRock was founded in 1988 by Larry Fink, Robert S. Kapito, Susan Wagner, Barbara Novick, Ben Golub, Hugh Frater, Ralph Schlosstein, and Keith Anderson to provide institutional clients with asset management services from a risk management perspective.

And next up is BlackRock, another giant in the ETF industry. The company owns 171 million shares of Tesla, accounting for 5.4% of the company's shares outstanding.

What family owns the most wealth? ›

At $224.5 billion, the Waltons are the richest family in the world thanks to their massive stake in Walmart, the world's largest company by revenue.

Our new analysis shows that foreign investors owned about 40 percent of US corporate equity in 2019, up substantially over the last few decades. Retirement accounts of US households owned about 30 percent in 2019, and the taxable accounts of US investors owned about 25 percent, which is most of the rest.

Probably the best-known government corporations are the United States Postal Service and Amtrak. They are different from other agencies in that they are businesses created by Congress, and they charge fees for their services.

U.S. companies start with the advantage of living in a large addressable market that is extremely attractive, with a large GDP, a hom*ogenous language and relatively similar buying patterns. This allows them to get their foothold and develop before beginning their international journey.

Gannett, the owner of USA TODAY, restructures into two business units. Gannett, owner of USA TODAY and local media organizations in 45 states, on Wednesday announced a corporate restructuring that creates two new business units.

Globally, large media conglomerates include Bertelsmann, National Amusem*nts (Paramount Global), Sony Group Corporation, News Corp, Comcast, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox Corporation, Hearst Communications, Amazon (MGM Holdings Inc.), Grupo Globo (South America), and Lagardère Group.

Some estimates claim as much as 90% of U.S. media is controlled by just six companies. The big six media companies right now are Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS), AT&T (NYSE:T), Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA), Sony (NYSE:SONY), and Fox (NASDAQ:FOX).

What are top 4 companies? ›

These companies, which are referred to as the "Big Four," include Deloitte, KPMG, EY (Ernst & Young), and PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers).

Types of businesses FAQs

The four main types of business structures are sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, and limited liability company (LLC).

The most common forms of business are the sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, and S corporation.

With 600 billion U.S. dollars in revenue, Walmart topped the ranking of the hundred largest companies globally, followed by the Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco. Walmart was also the largest company in the world based on its number of employees, with some 2.3 million all over the world.

KPMG is the oldest of the Big 4, and its earliest parent company was founded in 1818. As with all the Big 4, the firm grew in the 1800s and 1900s through a series of mergers. In 1987, the first large-scale merger in the accounting industry took place between KMG and Peat Marwick which formed KPMG as we know it today.

A quick overview of the firms

PwC is the largest by revenue and the most prestigious of the Big Four with a strong and established audit client base. Deloitte is just a fraction smaller than PwC.

Big Four refers to the top four accounting firms globally that audit more than 80% of US public companies, including Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, and Ernst & Young. For these accounting firms, this term is used because of its huge size, good reputation, and worldwide reach in the field.

With a market capitalization of 2.64 trillion U.S. dollars as of April 2021, Apple was the world's largest company in 2022. Rounding out the top five were some of the world's most recognizable brands: Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), Microsoft, Google's parent company Alphabet, and Amazon.

What are the top 10 successful businesses? ›

Now, 90% of the media in the United States is controlled by just six corporations: AT&T, CBS, Comcast, Disney, Newscorp and Viacom.