Italy Ranks 4th Globally in Family Business Sales, Says EY 2025 Report

The total sales of Italian family businesses increased by 12% to reach 179 billion dollars in 2025 as compared to the Index created by EY in 2023.

Italian family companies affirm their expansion and important role on a worldwide scale, despite the complexity of the global geopolitical situation and the added element of uncertainty associated with recent levies.

Italy is fourth internationally and third in Europe for the number of firms in the top 500, according to the Global 500 Family Business Index 2025, a biennial index developed by EY in partnership with Saint Gallen University that assesses the 500 finest family businesses based on sales.

The total sales of Italian family companies increased by 12% to reach 179 billion dollars in 2025 as compared to the Index created by EY in 2023.

“The analysis of the Global 500 Family Business Index 2025 highlights the growth and relevance of Italian family businesses in the global economic landscape, placing Italy in fourth place after the United States, Germany and France.

Despite the challenges of recent years and the recent duties that have introduced a further element of uncertainty, Italian companies continue to demonstrate a strong ability to adapt to the external context and grow, also thanks to careful management orientated towards investments in technology, research and innovation. Resilience and flexibility, already demonstrated during the pandemic, are now more than ever crucial qualities to leverage, in addition to decision-making readiness.

Furthermore, in key sectors such as consumer products and advanced manufacturing, typical of the panorama of Italian family businesses, the focus on product quality represents a differentiating factor that can help address the current economic context”, commented Massimo Meloni, EY Italy private leader and Italy audit & assurance market leader.

Among the main data that emerge from the 500 global family businesses are the growth in the number of companies in our country: of the 500 top companies globally, 22 are Italian, equal to 4.4% of the total, with 4 new entries in the 2025 index, compared to the exit of two companies included in the previous analysis. A growth that is even more evident from the point of view of combined revenues, which increased from 160 billion to 179 billion dollars, equal to approximately 12% more than the previous survey carried out in 2023.

On the other hand, the average revenues of Italian companies, 8.1 billion dollars, are lower than both the European average (16.1 billion dollars) and the global average (17.6 billion). A fundamental data point that distinguishes Italian family businesses concerns their longevity; in fact, 36% of the companies included in the Global 500 Family Business Index 2025 have more than a century of history.

In terms of territorial distribution, Lombardy stands out with 8 family business companies in the top 500, while in terms of higher revenues, Lombardy and Piedmontese companies contribute 58% of the national total.

On the other hand, the presence of family businesses in the Centre-South is limited: only 27% of the companies included belong to these regions, with a contribution to combined Italian revenues of 23%, demonstrating an economic-entrepreneurial fabric that in those areas of the country still has significant room for growth.

In terms of the relevant sector, national family businesses operate in 11 different macro-sectors, mainly in consumer products, approximately 23% of companies, followed by advanced manufacturing and retail products, each with 14%.