European Car Brands and Their Origins

1. Germany

• Volkswagen Group (Headquarters: Wolfsburg)

  • Brands: VW, Audi, Porsche, Skoda, Seat, Cupra, Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati (motorcycles)
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Porsche SE (Germany, Porsche/Piëch family): ~53.3% of voting rights
    • State of Lower Saxony (Germany): ~20%
    • Qatar (Qatar Holding): ~17%

• Mercedes-Benz Group (Headquarters: Stuttgart)

  • Brands: Mercedes-Benz, Smart, Maybach
  • Major Shareholders:
    • BAIC (China, state-owned automaker): ~10%
    • Geely (China, Li Shufu): ~9.7%
    • Kuwait Investment Authority (Kuwait, sovereign wealth fund): ~6.8%

• BMW Group (Headquarters: Munich)

  • Brands: BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Quandt family (Germany): ~46.8%
    • Institutional investors (mostly from Europe and the US)

• Stellantis (partially German) (Headquarters: Netherlands)

  • Brands: Peugeot, Citroën, DS Automobiles, Opel, Vauxhall, Fiat, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, RAM, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Lancia
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Exor (Agnelli family, Italy): ~14.4%
    • French government (Bpifrance, through PSA acquisition): ~6%
    • Peugeot family (France): ~7%
    • Dongfeng (China, former PSA partner): ~4%

2. USA

• General Motors (GM) (Headquarters: Detroit)

  • Brands: Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac, Buick
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Institutional investors (USA, e.g., BlackRock, Vanguard, Capital Group)

• Ford Motor Company (Headquarters: Dearborn)

  • Brands: Ford, Lincoln
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Ford family (USA, holds special shares with voting control)
    • Institutional investors (BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, mostly USA-based)

• Tesla (Headquarters: Palo Alto, California)

  • Brands: Tesla
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Elon Musk (South Africa/USA): ~13%
    • Institutional investors (BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, mostly USA-based)

3. Japan

• Toyota Motor Corporation (Headquarters: Toyota City)

  • Brands: Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu, Hino (commercial vehicles)
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Japanese banks & insurance companies (Toyota itself, Nippon Life, Sumitomo Mitsui, JP Morgan Japan)

• Honda Motor Co. (Headquarters: Tokyo)

  • Brands: Honda, Acura
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Institutional investors (Japan, Nippon Life, BlackRock Japan, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust)

• Nissan Motor Co. (Headquarters: Yokohama)

  • Brands: Nissan, Infiniti, Datsun (discontinued)
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Renault (France): ~15%
    • Japanese investors (state-owned and private companies, e.g., Japan Trustee Services Bank)

• Mazda (Headquarters: Hiroshima)

  • Major Shareholders:
    • Toyota (Japan, around 5%)
    • Japanese banks and institutional investors

• Subaru Corporation (Headquarters: Tokyo)

  • Major Shareholders:
    • Toyota (Japan, around 20%)

4. France

• Renault Group (Headquarters: Boulogne-Billancourt)
  • Brands: Renault, Dacia, Alpine, Mobilize
  • Major Shareholders:
    • French government: ~15%
    • Nissan (Japan): ~15%
    • Institutional investors (mainly from France and Europe)

5. Italy

• Ferrari (Headquarters: Maranello)

  • Major Shareholders:
    • Exor (Agnelli family, Italy): ~24%
    • Institutional investors (Europe & USA, e.g., BlackRock, Vanguard)

• Lamborghini (Part of Volkswagen, Audi subsidiary)

6. South Korea

• Hyundai Motor Group (Headquarters: Seoul)
  • Brands: Hyundai, Kia, Genesis
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Chung family (South Korea, Hyundai founders)
    • Korean banks & sovereign funds

7. China

• Geely (Headquarters: Hangzhou)

  • Brands: Geely, Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Zeekr, Lynk & Co
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Li Shufu (China, company founder): Majority owner
    • Chinese sovereign funds & banks

• BYD (Headquarters: Shenzhen)

  • Major Shareholders:
    • Warren Buffett (Berkshire Hathaway, USA): ~8%
    • Chinese institutional investors & banks

• Nio, XPeng, Li Auto

  • Major Shareholders:
    • Private and state-owned Chinese investors

8. India

• Tata Motors (Headquarters: Mumbai)
  • Brands: Tata, Jaguar, Land Rover
  • Major Shareholders:
    • Tata Sons (India, majority owner)

—

Summary by Ownership Structure

• Strong State Influence: Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis
• Family-Controlled: BMW (Quandt), Volkswagen (Porsche/Piëch), Stellantis (Agnelli/Peugeot), Hyundai (Chung), Ferrari (Agnelli)
• Institutional Investor Dominance: GM, Ford, Tesla, Toyota, Honda
• Chinese-Controlled: Geely, BYD

—