London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Dec 25, 2025

Nearly Half of All Fortune 500 Companies Were Founded By Immigrants or Their Children, Study Finds

Nearly Half of All Fortune 500 Companies Were Founded By Immigrants or Their Children, Study Finds

A recent American economy study found that immigrants and the children of immigrants founded 45 percent of U.S. Fortune 500 companies, amassing $6.1 trillion in annual revenue last year.

The study, released Thursday from The New American Economy Research Fund, is the latest piece of research tying a significant portion of U.S. economic growth to migrant families. The pro-immigration group's data revealed there were 101 companies founded directly by foreign-born individuals and another 122 were created by the children of immigrants. U.S. Fortune 500 companies founded by immigrants employ 13.5 million people and, on average, employ 11 percent more people than the median Fortune 500 corporation founded by a non-immigrant.

Several legacy immigrant-founded companies have become household names throughout much of the country, including Apple and Costco, in addition to more recent creations such as Intuit and Broadcom.

The revenue brought in by these companies on the New American Fortune 500 list is $1.1 trillion more than Japan's entire gross domestic product, $2.1 trillion more than Germany's GDP and nearly three times that of the United Kingdom's entire GDP. As the report notes, the 13.5 million people employed by these companies creates a population that would rank as the fifth largest state in the country.

More than 50 percent of the revenue pulled in by Fortune 500 companies in Georgia, Pennsylvania, Washington and New York states originated from companies founded by immigrants or their children. In Illinois alone, revenue brought in by immigrant-led Fortune 500 companies equaled 70 percent of the state's overall GDP.

Comparatively, companies founded by non-immigrants such as Walmart, Exxon and CVS amassed $7.6 trillion in 2018.

Last year, a Citigroup and Oxford University report found that two-thirds of U.S. GDP expansion since 2011 was "directly attributable to migration." The report reflected that the risks of migration draw in people who are inherently entrepreneurial-minded despite only making up about 14 percent of the overall U.S. population. The study noted immigrants were more than twice as likely to come up with a patented invention or to win an Academy Award or Nobel Prize.

The study does not differentiate between legal and illegal forms of entry into the United States.

"Their presence," wrote co-author Ian Goldin, a professor of globalization and development at Oxford, "usually is associated with higher wages, higher productivity, lower unemployment and higher female workforce participation."

The Citigroup/Oxford study showed that migrants had founded about 40 percent of businesses on the Fortune 500 list and about one-third of all the country's businesses founded since 2011.

As Axios noted Monday, several economics professors including Harvard University's George J. Borjas have detailed how immigrants receive government assistance at higher rates than people born in the U.S., saying immigration creates a $50 billion "fiscal hole" that falls on American taxpayers each year.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Mortgage Rates Edge Lower as Bank of England Base Rate Cut Filters Through Lending Market
U.S. Supermarket Gives Customers Free Groceries for Christmas After Computer Glitch
Air India ‘Finds’ a Plane That Vanished 13 Years Ago
Caviar and Foie Gras? China Is Becoming a Luxury Food Powerhouse
Hong Kong Climbs to Second Globally in 2025 Tourism Rankings Behind Bangkok
From Sunniest Year on Record to Terror Plots and Sports Triumphs: The UK’s Defining Stories of 2025
Greta Thunberg Released on Bail After Arrest at London Pro-Palestinian Demonstration
Banksy Unveils New Winter Mural in London Amid Festive Season Excitement
UK Households Face Rising Financial Strain as Tax Increases Bite and Growth Loses Momentum
UK Government Approves Universal Studios Theme Park in Bedford Poised to Rival Disneyland Paris
UK Gambling Shares Slide as Traders Respond to Steep Tax Rises and Sector Uncertainty
Starmer and Trump Coordinate on Ukraine Peace Efforts in Latest Diplomatic Call
The Pilot Barricaded Himself in the Cockpit and Refused to Take Off: "We Are Not Leaving Until I Receive My Salary"
UK Fashion Label LK Bennett Pursues Accelerated Sale Amid Financial Struggles
U.S. Government Warns UK Over Free Speech in Pro-Life Campaigner Prosecution
Newly Released Files Shed Light on Jeffrey Epstein’s Extensive Links to the United Kingdom
Prince William and Prince George Volunteer Together at UK Homelessness Charity
UK Police Arrest Protesters Chanting ‘Globalise the Intifada’ as Authorities Recalibrate Free Speech Enforcement
Scambodia: The World Owes Thailand’s Military a Profound Debt of Gratitude
Women in Partial Nudity — and Bill Clinton in a Dress and Heels: The Images Revealed in the “Epstein Files”
US Envoy Witkoff to Convene Security Advisers from Ukraine, UK, France and Germany in Miami as Peace Efforts Intensify
UK Retailers Report Sharp Pre-Christmas Sales Decline and Weak Outlook, CBI Survey Shows
UK Government Rejects Use of Frozen Russian Assets to Fund Aid for Ukraine
UK Financial Conduct Authority Opens Formal Investigation into WH Smith After Accounting Errors
UK Issues Final Ultimatum to Roman Abramovich Over £2.5bn Chelsea Sale Funds for Ukraine
Rare Pink Fog Sweeps Across Parts of the UK as Met Office Warns of Poor Visibility
UK Police Pledge ‘More Assertive’ Enforcement to Tackle Antisemitism at Protests
UK Police Warn They Will Arrest Protesters Chanting ‘Globalise the Intifada’
Trump Files $10 Billion Defamation Lawsuit Against BBC as Broadcaster Pledges Legal Defence
UK Says U.S. Tech Deal Talks Still Active Despite Washington’s Suspension of Prosperity Pact
UK Mortgage Rules to Give Greater Flexibility to Borrowers With Irregular Incomes
UK Treasury Moves to Position Britain as Leading Global Hub for Crypto Firms
U.S. Freezes £31 Billion Tech Prosperity Deal With Britain Amid Trade Dispute
Prince Harry and Meghan’s Potential UK Return Gains New Momentum Amid Security Review and Royal Dialogue
Zelensky Opens High-Stakes Peace Talks in Berlin with Trump Envoy and European Leaders
Historical Reflections on Press Freedom Emerge Amid Debate Over Trump’s Media Policies
UK Boosts Protection for Jewish Communities After Sydney Hanukkah Attack
UK Government Declines to Comment After ICC Prosecutor Alleges Britain Threatened to Defund Court Over Israel Arrest Warrant
Apple Shutters All Retail Stores in the United Kingdom Under New National COVID-19 Lockdown
US–UK Technology Partnership Strains as Key Trade Disagreements Emerge
UK Police Confirm No Further Action Over Allegation That Andrew Asked Bodyguard to Investigate Virginia Giuffre
Giuffre Family Expresses Deep Disappointment as UK Police Decline New Inquiry Into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Claims
Transatlantic Trade Ambitions Hit a Snag as UK–US Deal Faces Emerging Challenges
Ex-ICC Prosecutor Alleges UK Threatened to Withdraw Funding Over Netanyahu Arrest Warrant Bid
UK Disciplinary Tribunal Clears Carter-Ruck Lawyer of Misconduct in OneCoin Case
‘Pink Ladies’ Emerge as Prominent Face of UK Anti-Immigration Protests
Nigel Farage Says Reform UK Has Become Britain’s Largest Party as Labour Membership Falls Sharply
Google DeepMind and UK Government Launch First Automated AI Lab to Accelerate Scientific Discovery
UK Economy Falters Ahead of Budget as Growth Contracts and Confidence Wanes
Australia Approves Increased Foreign Stake in Strategic Defence Shipbuilder
×