1 Detroit Automaker Is Actually Headquartered in Amsterdam
When Americans picture Amsterdam, they usually think about the canals that crisscross “Venice of the North” or the lax drug laws that have drawn tourists to this city in the modern era. But not many folks think of it as the home of Stellantis, which is the parent company of the Chrysler Corporation. Yup, you read that right: one of the Detroit Three is technically headquartered in Amsterdam.
Why is Chrysler now called Stellantis?
After fifteen years of mergers, Chrysler Corporation (alternatively called Mopar, which includes Dodge, Jeep, and Ram) is now the North American branch of Stellantis. Stellantis is a conglomerate of sixteen automakers from France and Italy, as well as the Chrysler Corporation family.
Operating an automobile manufacturer is an expensive enterprise. There is money to be saved by teaming up with others. Companies can purchase components or raw materials in bulk to reduce the cost. They can also share engineering costs by sharing parts. They can even reduce production costs by rebadging each other’s models.
Chrysler Corporation has often looked outside Detroit for partnerships. It worked with Mitsubishi in the 1980s. It then merged with Daimler from 1998-2007 to form Daimler Chrysler. After the 2008 recession, Chrysler sought a new partner and landed on Fiat. The two automakers formed Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2014. In 2021, FCA merged with Peugeot S.A. and formed Stellantis.
Where is Stellantis based?
Stellantis is a multinational conglomerate of 16 car brands. Its world headquarters are in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands.
Who all is part of Stellantis? You can think of the company as three major families of brands. The French group (previously Peugeot), the Italian group (formerly Fiat), and the North American group (formerly Chrysler Corporation).
In addition to Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram, Stellantis includes Fiat, Peugeot, Alfa Romeo, Citroën, Maserati, Opel, Vauxhall, and Lancia. The company also lists some more niche brands. Fiat spinoffs include Fiat Professional and Abart. The Dodge parts brand is Mopar. And the company’s luxury EV brand is DS Automobiles.
Wagoneer is technically a sub-brand of Jeep, which Stellantis does not yet list as one of its standalone members. Technically, Stellantis also owns orphaned brands such as Plymouth and older names Chrysler Corporation has the trademark to. One example is the revived Hornet from Dodge.
An equal merger between three large brand families presented a diplomatic issue. Which home country would serve as Stellantis’ headquarters? The conglomerate’s solution was to establish its headquarters in a neutral city: Amsterdam. But the choice of Amsterdam may have been more than a diplomatic move.
Who owns Chrysler Corp?
Chrysler Corporation is part of Stellantis. Stellantis’ headquarters location (Amsterdam) is a major clue to its ownership. The largest stake of the conglomerate (13.99%) is held by the Agnelli family of The Netherlands.
Stellantis is such a huge merger of massive companies that all have their own investors. 13.99% is the largest stake any one owner can claim. The second largest stake is 6.98%, which goes to the Peugeot family. The next goes to the BPI Fance bank, which actually holds 6.00% of Stellantis. The Chinese-government-owned Dongeng Motor Corporation has 3.09% of Stellantis. Finally, the American company that owns the greatest portion of Stellantis is BlackRock investing, which can claim 2.97%.
The twin revolutions of electrification and automation will be two of the biggest research and development projects in a century. Multiple automakers may go bankrupt attempting to keep up. Those who survive will likely merge into several super companies. In this way, Chrysler Corporation–and Stellantis–are probably ahead of the curve.
Next, find out why the Stellantis CEO warns Europe the combustion ban may be hasty, or learn more about Stellantis and Chrysler’s relationship in the video below:
