In June 2009, Crysler emerged from bankruptcy proceedings and became owned by the U.S. and Canadian governments, the United Auto Workers (UAW) pension fund, and the Italian holding company FIAT S.p.A. Later FIAT took over a majority stake, thus creating an holding company called FIAT Chrysler Automobiles. In 2021, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group merged to form Stellantis. Therefore, today, Crysler is part of Stellantis, which generated nearly €180 billion in revenue in 2022, with a net profit of €16.78 billion.
Introducing the Crysler brand
Chrysler is an American automobile manufacturer founded in 1925 by Walter Chrysler. The company has produced a range of vehicles over the decades such as sedans, SUVs, and minivans. One of Chrysler’s most significant achievements was the development of the HEMI engine in the 1950s which revolutionized high-performance engines.
Chrysler is one of the so-called “Big Three” American auto manufacturers (alongside General Motors and Ford) that enjoy a dominant position in the car and truck market and have influenced the global automotive industry.
Chrysler is now owned by Stellantis North America, a subsidiary of multinational automotive company Stellantis that also sells Dodge, Jeep, and Ram-branded vehicles. With that in mind, let’s discuss some of Chrysler’s ownership history below.
Government bailout
Like GM and Ford, the oil crisis of 1973 exposed Chrysler and its fleet of relatively expensive vehicles that were not terribly fuel efficient. With consumers looking for a more economical option, many flocked to compact, fuel-efficient Japanese models.
A second oil crisis in 1979 had Chrysler teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, but CEO Lee Iacocca made the then-bold move to secure a $1.5 billion loan from the U.S. Government. Iacocca then trimmed the company’s balance sheet and managed to repay the loan in 1983 well in advance of the deadline.
He later introduced the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager – the first family-oriented mini-vans – which would become a sales leader for the next quarter of a century. He also revived the Jeep brand and was involved in various partnerships and acquisitions.
Iacocca retires
Iacocca retired in 1992 and was replaced by Robert Eaton. The president of GM Europe was later persuaded to embark on a new direction for Chrysler which saw it merge with Daimler AG in 1998 as part of a $38 billion stock swap.
While the deal was announced as the coming together of two equal companies, many posited that the German company was taking over Chrysler and in any case, a clash of cultures and objectives would make the partnership untenable.
Second bailout and new owners
Chrysler was impacted by the 2008 GFC and once more turned to the U.S. Government to survive. The company continued to operate via a combination of talks with creditors and Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.
In June 2009, the company emerged from bankruptcy proceedings and became owned by the U.S. and Canadian governments, the United Auto Workers (UAW) pension fund, and the Italian holding company Fiat S.p.A.
As part of the deal, Fiat took a 20% stake in Chrysler and most of its assets.
Chrysler was also restructured and became known as Chrysler Group LLC.
Fiat’s stake increased to 46% after helping the company pay back its government debt and became the majority owner in 2011.
Three years later, Fiat assumed full ownership after acquiring the final share of Chrysler owned by UAW.
When Fiat merged with PSA in 2021 in a $52 billion deal, Chrysler became a subsidiary of Stellantis – the world’s fourth-largest auto group.
Key takeaways:
- Chrysler is an American automobile manufacturer founded in 1925 by Walter Chrysler. The company has produced a range of vehicles over the decades such as sedans, SUVs, and minivans. Chrysler is one of the big three manufacturers with GM and Ford.
- Chrysler is now owned by Stellantis North America, a subsidiary of multinational automotive company Stellantis that also sells Dodge, Jeep, and Ram-branded vehicles.
- Prior to Stellantis, Chrysler merged with Daimler AG in a deal many saw as a takeover by the German brand. After the 2008 GFC, Chrysler became part-owned by two North American governments, an auto workers union, and Fiat.
Related Onwership Case Studies
Who Owns Tesla
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Who Owns Bentley
Bentley is owned by the Porsche family, which also owns the whole Volkswagen Group, through the Porsche Automobil Holding SE. Indeed, the entire group comprises three types of brands: volume, premium, and sport. Bentley is part of the premium segment of the Volkswagen Group, and it generated over €2.84 billion in revenue in 2021, within the overall €250 billion in revenue from the whole Volkswagen Group.
Who Owns Bugatti
Formerly part of the Volkswagen Group, which owns iconic brands like Lamborghini, Bentley, and Ducati, Bugatti is part of a new joint venture. Indeed, Porsche (the corporation which controls Volkswagen, owned by the Porsche family) still holds a 24% stake in the holding that controls Bugatti. The brand has been spun out from Volkswagen. A majority stake of 55% is now owned by a joint venture called Rimac Group, controlled by Porsche (24%), Hyundai (12%), Mate Rimac (37%), and Other Investors. The Porsche family also holds a further 45% stake in the Bugatti | Rimac joint venture, thus playing the role of key shareholder.
Who Owns Volkswagen
The major shareholder of Volkswagen is Porsche Automobil Holding SE, a company investing in various automakers. This is the holding of the Porsche family, the primary shareholder of Volkswagen, with a 31.4% ownership stake in the company and a 53.3% voting power. Volkswagen is an automaker empire with brands that comprise Audi, Skoda, Seat, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Porsche, Bentley, and Ducati.
Who Owns Lamborghini
Lamborghini is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer founded in 1963 by manufacturing magnate Ferruccio Lamborghini. Since that time, ownership of the firm has changed several times. Another financial crisis in the late 1990s saw Lamborghini sold to Volkswagen through its subsidiary Audi AG. The subsidiary remains the owner of Lamborghini today. And it’s part of the Volkswagen Group.
Who Owns Tata
Tata Motors is the largest Indian automotive manufacturing company, which also owns the Jaguar Land Rover group. The Tata Family primarily owns Tata through Tata Sons Pvt Limited—a corporation that controls 46.33% of the company.
Who Owns Range Rover
Range Rover has been part of the Jaguar Land Rover Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Motors, since 2008, when Tata acquired the Jaguar Land Rover businesses from Ford Motor Company for $2.3 billion. Thus, Range Rover is owned by Tata Motors, primarily by the Tata family, which controls the company via its holding (Tata Sons Pvt Limited), the largest shareholder, with 46.33% ownership.
Who Owns Rivian
Rivian’s main shareholder is Amazon NV Investment Holdings, Amazon’s investment arm, with 18.1% in common stocks, followed by T. Rowe Price Associates with 18.2% and Global Oryx Company with 12.7% ownership. Other significant investors comprise Ford Motor Company, with 11.4% of the company’s ownership. At the same time, major individual investors comprise Robert J. Scaringe, founder, and CEO of Rivian.
Who Owns Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce is part of the BMW Group, a group, which generated over €142 billion in revenue in 2022. Rolls-Royce’s top models comprise the Phantom, Ghost, Wraith/Dawn, Cullinan.
Who Owns BMW
In the provided data, the shareholder ownership of the company is distributed among various entities and individuals.
AQTON SE, Bad Homburg v.d. Höhe holds 9% of the company’s shares.
AQTON GmbH & Co. KG für Automobilwerte, Bad Homburg v.d. Höhe has a 16.6% ownership stake.
Susanne Klatten Beteiligungs GmbH, Bad Homburg v.d. Höhe owns 20.7% of the company’s shares.
Susanne Klatten and Stefan Quandt each hold a 0.2% ownership stake in the company.
Treasury shares account for 0.2% of the company’s shares.
The majority of the company’s shares, 50.7%, are free-floating, meaning they are publicly traded and available for purchase by various investors.
Overall, the data reveals a diverse shareholder structure, with a mix of individual and institutional investors, as well as a significant portion of free-floating shares.
Who Owns General Motors
Top shareholders include institutional investors, named executive officers, and sure other beneficial owners. The top five shareholders are BlackRock, Inc., The Vanguard Group, Capital Research Global Investors, Capital World Investors, and Mary T. Barra, who is a named executive officer of the company. BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder with over 117 million shares or 8.1% of outstanding shares, followed closely by The Vanguard Group with over 102 million or 7.0% of outstanding shares. These two asset management companies collectively own a significant portion of the company.
Who Owns IBM
IBM is primarily owned by institutional investors like Vanguard Group (8.86%), BlackRock (8%), and State Street (5.93%). Top individual investors comprise Arvind Krishna, CEO of IBM; senior vice president Michelle H. Browdy; James J. Kavanaugh, responsible for the company’s financial operations, and Alex Gorsky (board member) and Gary Cohn (former vice chairman).
Who Owns Crysler
In June 2009, Crysler emerged from bankruptcy proceedings and became owned by the U.S. and Canadian governments, the United Auto Workers (UAW) pension fund, and the Italian holding company FIAT S.p.A. Later FIAT took over a majority stake, thus creating an holding company called FIAT Chrysler Automobiles. In 2021, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group merged to form Stellantis. Therefore, today, Crysler is part of Stellantis, which generated nearly €180 billion in revenue in 2022, with a net profit of €16.78 billion.
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