Giant firms from emerging economies are increasingly becoming global players. Few studies have seriously analyzed, however, the high level of family control in these giant firms, and its economic significance. The present article has elaborated a pioneering data base with the largest family firms in Mexico, Brazil and China, and has identified who are the families who control them, and argues that their weight and influences are more important than usually acknowledged.

The article shows that the largest family firms in Brazil have a greater longevity than other large family firms in other emerging economies, such as China or Mexico. The study analyzes these giant firms, many of them centennial, who have become global players. Public support is one of its success factors, but the authors outline the significance of the accumulation of resources inside these firms, an enduring pool of know-how that allows them to adjust to the changing reality of their own country and the international markets. The second section of the article focuses on four case studies of some of the oldest and largest family businesses in Brazil: Banco Itaú Unibanco, Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), Odebrecht and Votorantim. The study aims to make a contribution to a better understanding of the contribution of these family firms to the success of the Brazilian econ...

No presenta resumen.

Giant firms from emerging economies are increasingly becoming global players. Few studies have seriously analyzed, however, the high level of family control in these giant firms, and its economic significance. The present article has elaborated a pioneering data base with the largest family firms in Mexico, Brazil and China, and has identified who are the families who control them, and argues that their weight and influences are more important than usually acknowledged.

The article shows that the largest family firms in Brazil have a greater longevity than other large family firms in other emerging economies, such as China or Mexico. The study analyzes these giant firms, many of them centennial, who have become global players. Public support is one of its success factors, but the authors outline the significance of the accumulation of resources inside these firms, an enduring pool of know-how that allows them to adjust to the changing reality of their own country and the international markets. The second section of the article focuses on four case studies of some of the oldest and largest family businesses in Brazil: Banco Itaú Unibanco, Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), Odebrecht and Votorantim. The study aims to make a contribution to a better understanding of the contribution of these family firms to the success of the Brazilian economy today.

No presenta resumen.