EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Limited is a Swiss company with registered seats in Switzerland providing services to clients in Switzerland.
Recent Searches
Press release
13 Jan 2026
|
Zurich, Switzerland
US corporations dominate the global stock exchanges; 12 Swiss companies in the top 500
- Nvidia remains the highest-valued company in the world, followed by Apple and Alphabet.
- US groups continue to dominate: 60 of the world’s 100 most expensive companies are based in the United States.
- Eight of the top ten companies are also headquartered in the United States; no European companies are represented.
- Three Swiss companies rank among the global top 100, with a total of eight in the top 300 and 12 in the top 500.
Zurich, 12 January 2026 - Despite the political and economic situation remaining difficult, the world’s most important companies continued to gain massively in value over the course of 2025: since the end of last year, the market value of the 100 most valuable listed companies has risen by 23%, or more than USD 10 trillion, to a new record of USD 54.4 trillion. The strongest increase in value was recorded by Asian companies, whose stock market value rose by almost 27%. The value of US groups rose by 23%, while that of their European counterparts did so by 20%. This means that the cumulative market value of the top 100 has risen by as much as 55% since the end of 2023, when it already totaled around USD 35 trillion.
US companies continue to dominate the rankings
The United States currently has 60 companies in the top 100, two fewer than at the end of 2024. China is second with 11 companies, one more than a year ago. In third place is the United Kingdom, which currently has four companies. On the reporting date, Switzerland was represented by three companies – Roche, Novartis and Nestlé – and shared fourth place with Germany and France, which also had three companies each.
Eight of the ten most expensive companies in the world at present are based in the United States. The most expensive is currently Nvidia (USD 4,531.7 billion), followed by Apple (USD 4,017.1 billion), Alphabet (USD 3,781.3 billion) and Microsoft (USD 3,594.4 billion). In addition to the United States, Saudi Arabia is represented in the top ten by Saudi Aramco (USD 1,536.8 billion) and Taiwan by the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (USD 1,280.0 billion). The most valuable European company is now the Dutch technology group ASML (ranked 24th), which manufactures EUV lithography machines for the production of computer chips.
These results come from an analysis by the auditing and consulting firm EY, which examines the market capitalization of the world’s highest-valued companies on a six-monthly basis. The cut-off date for this analysis is December 31, 2025 (close of trading).
The AI boom is driving the markets – Europe remains a spectator
As was the case a year ago, the industry rankings are led by the technology sector, which has 27 companies in the top 100 – three more than at the end of 2024. Second place is shared by the consumer goods sector and the financial sector, each with 20 companies in the top 100. The most significant growth compared to the end of 2024 was in the industrial (up 44%) and technology sectors (up 34%), while the energy sector lost the most ground with a decline of 2%.
“2025 was dominated by artificial intelligence on the global stock exchanges,” said Stefan Rösch-Rütsche, Country Managing Partner of EY Switzerland. “The fact that no other Swiss companies made the world’s top 100 in this segment is less a sign of a lack of quality than a reflection of the global market strength of US technology groups. Stock market valuations are increasingly subject to technological scaling, while Switzerland traditionally impresses with its substance, resilience and long-term value creation,” explained Stefan Rösch-Rütsche.
Swiss companies maintaining a stable presence in the global rankings
Swiss companies are consistently ranked among the best in the world as it is, but some even managed to climb a considerable number of places in the standings. Roche, for example, is the top Swiss company and has moved up to 31st (previous year: 46th) with a market capitalization of USD 353.4 billion, up more than 50% on the previous year (December 31, 2024). Novartis rose from 66th to 53rd with USD 265.2 billion, making it Switzerland’s number two, as Nestlé fell from 51st to 57th compared with the previous year and has a capitalization of USD 255.5 billion.
Some Swiss companies outside the top 100 have also improved their position since the beginning of the year. Eight Swiss companies make the top 300 in total. Joining the aforementioned groups are the following five companies: With a market value of USD 147.7 billion, UBS now leads the chasing pack in 128th (previous year: 170th), followed by ABB in 142nd with USD 135.9 billion (previous year: 166th). Richemont also shot up the rankings to reach 155th (previous year: 186th) with a market capitalization of USD 127.6 billion. Chubb Limited fell slightly to 166th place (previous year: 147th) with a market value of USD 122.8 billion. Zurich Insurance Group improved by three places to reach 190th and has a market capitalization of USD 108 billion.
In total, 12 Swiss companies (previous year 14) are still among the top 500. The list is supplemented by: Glencore (345th) with USD 64.2 billion (previous year: 355th), Holcim (441st) with USD 52.8 billion (previous year: 353rd), Swiss Re (466th) with USD 49.4 billion (previous year: 455th) and Lonza (484th) with USD 47.6 billion (previous year: 451st). Givaudan (626th) and Sika (702nd) have dropped out of the top 500 this year.
“As well as the continuing dominance of US technology companies, the valuation of Swiss companies is heavily shaped by individual industry and company factors. Added to these are geopolitical influences and the current US tariff policy,” said Stefan Rösch-Rütsche, Country Managing Partner of EY Switzerland.
Europe’s importance on global stock exchanges has declined further in recent years. While 17 European groups are currently ranked among the top 100 (one fewer than at the end of 2024), this is down from 26 in 2015 and as many as 46 in 2007. At that time, the United States had only 32 companies in the top 100. Today, it is 60 companies – almost twice as many as 18 years ago.
EY Market capitalization analysis
About the global EY organization
The global EY organization is a leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. We leverage our experience, knowledge and services to help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies all over the world. We are ideally equipped for this task — with well trained employees, strong teams, excellent services and outstanding client relations. Our global purpose is to drive progress and make a difference by building a better working world — for our people, for our clients and for our communities.
The global EY organization refers to all member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited (EYG). Each EYG member firm is a separate legal entity and has no liability for another such entity’s acts or omissions. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.
EY’s organization is represented in Switzerland by Ernst & Young Ltd, Basel, with 10 offices across Switzerland, and in Liechtenstein by Ernst & Young AG, Vaduz. In this publication, “EY” and “we” refer to Ernst & Young Ltd, Basel, a member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.