30 Biggest European Companies by Market Value

All the hype these days is about Chinese or US economies, but what about biggest European companies by market value? Granted, none of them is among 11 biggest private companies in the world, but these are all major global players in their respective fields. Companies like BASF, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Inditex, L’Oréal, and Nestle are the absolute world leaders in their sectors, being the largest companies in them. BMW, Volkswagen, British American Tobacco and Vodafone are among the most recognizable brands on the planet. One-half of Big Oil companies is also present. Judging by the list, Old Europe still has a lot to offer in the world of business.

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Based on Forbes’ list of biggest companies in the world, the list is dominated by pharmaceutical companies, followed by several banking, oil, and automotive giants. Looking by the country of origin, Germany has 9 companies on the list, followed closely by the United Kingdom with 8, Switzerland and France have 3 each, and Netherlands and Spain two each. Belgium, Ireland, and Denmark with one representative apiece complete the list. Interestingly enough, none of the Italian or Russian companies made it to the list.

None of the European companies for the 11 biggest private companies in the world list is here, since private companies market values is a rather hard to determine, since their stocks aren’t listed on stock markets.

30. BMW Group – Germany

Market Value: $81.4 B

We start with the icon of the automotive industry. BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke) was founded in 1916. During both World Wars, the company was a major aircraft manufacturer for German Luftwaffe. Today, BMW is part of Germany’s Big Three luxury car manufacturers, with Audi and Mercedes-Benz. With more than 2.1 million cars manufactured in 2014 alone, it is one of the largest automakers in the world.