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Holding Companies and Conglomerates

One ticker. Dozens of brands.

Public Conglomerates

A holding company is a corporation that owns controlling interests in other businesses rather than producing goods or services itself. When you buy one share of Alphabet, you're getting Google, YouTube, Android, Waze, Fitbit, Waymo, and a 14% stake in Anthropic. When you buy Berkshire Hathaway, you're getting GEICO, BNSF Railway, See's Candies, and stakes in Apple and Coca-Cola. Substox has identified 1,154 publicly traded holding companies with substantial subsidiary portfolios — here are the largest.

Browse the full set

Holding Companies and Conglomerates by Region

The cards above rank the largest holding companies by market cap. Below is the full directory Substox tracks — 1,276 holding companies grouped by region and split by whether their shares trade publicly (you can invest) or are privately held (you can’t). Select a region to expand it.

United States 1,069 companies

Publicly traded 986

Privately held 83

Europe 110 companies

Publicly traded 88

Privately held 22

Asia 74 companies

Publicly traded 66

Privately held 8

Americas 19 companies

Publicly traded 14

Privately held 5

Other 4 companies

Privately held 4

Related: Monopoly Stocks → Private Holdings → All Public Companies → By Market Cap →
Questions people ask

Common Questions

What is a holding company?

A company whose main business is owning other companies. Buying one share can give you a slice of dozens of underlying businesses at once, which is why holding companies are a common route to exposure you cannot otherwise get.

Why do holding companies matter for everyday brands?

Because a great many familiar brands are not independent companies at all. Tracing a brand up to its parent is often the only way to find something you can actually buy.

Is a holding company the same as a fund?

No. A holding company is an operating business that owns other businesses and is run by management with its own strategy. A fund holds securities on your behalf and charges a fee to do so.