COMPANY·HISTORIES

Sweden

Companies based in Sweden, and the events that shaped them.

39companies1837–2000founding years38still active1no longer operating
§ 01

Sweden companies over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedBonnier AB
1837
FoundedSkandia Insurance Company, Ltd.
1855
FoundedAtlas Copco AB
1873
FoundedPerstorp AB
1881
FoundedBRIO AB
1884
FoundedGunnebo AB
1889
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedAB Volvo
1915
FoundedICA AB
1917
FoundedTelefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
1918
FoundedElectrolux AB
1919
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
FoundedThe SAS Group
1946
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedGambro AB
1964
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedNobel Industries AB
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedSvenska Handelsbanken AB
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
TechnologyLinux and open source challenge proprietary software.
FoundedVattenfall AB
1992
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1994
TechnologyE-commerce begins to disrupt retail.
FoundedModern Times Group AB
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
FoundedFöreningsSparbanken AB
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
FoundedCloetta Fazer AB
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

A. JOHNSON & COMPANY H.B. (since 1988: AXEL JOHNSON GROUP AB) →
Active · Sweden
Founded: 1873 Employees: 3,383 Sales: Skr17.00 billion (US$2.50 billion) The Axel Johnson Group of Stockholm comprises…
Swedish Match AB →
Active · Sweden
Founded: 1917 as The Swedish Match Company Employees: 10,000 Sales: $1.22 billion (2000) Stock Exchanges: NASDAQ…
TeliaSonera AB →
Active · Sweden
TeliaSonera AB--formed from the merger of Sweden's Telia AB and Finland's Sonera at the beginning of 2003--is the…
Bonnier AB →
Active · founded 1837 · Sweden
Bonnier AB is one of the Nordic region's leading media groups, losing out the top spot to Finland's SanomaWSOY in 2001.
SWEDISH TELECOM →
Active · founded 1853 · Sweden
Swedish Telecom is a state-owned public utility, responsible for Sweden's telecommunications system, providing a…
Skandia Insurance Company, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1855 · Sweden
Since its founding in 1855, Sweden's Skandia Insurance Company, Ltd.
Sandvik AB →
Active · founded 1868 · Sweden
Sandvik AB is an industrial engineering group based in Sandviken, Sweden, and trading through an international network…
Atlas Copco AB →
Active · founded 1873 · Sweden
Atlas Copco AB is one of the world's leading producers of compressors, mining and construction equipment, power tools,…
Holmen AB →
Active · founded 1873 · Sweden
Early 1900s:[fsps*2.5]Company builds a sulfite pulp mill at Domsjö.
Perstorp AB →
Active · founded 1881 · Sweden
Perstorp AB operates as a specialty chemicals group focusing on polyalcohols, which are used in the production of…
Alfa Laval AB →
Active · founded 1883 · Sweden
Alfa Laval AB operates as a leader in the heat transfer, centrifugal separation, and fluid handling industries.
BRIO AB →
Active · founded 1884 · Sweden
BRIO AB is a century-old toy company based in Osby, Sweden, with subsidiaries in North America and Europe.
Skanska AB →
Active · founded 1887 · Sweden
After helping to build Scandinavia, Skanska AB is ready to help build the rest of the world.
Gunnebo AB →
Active · founded 1889 · Sweden
Acquisitive Gunnebo AB has quickly grown into one of the world's leading security groups.
Aktiebolaget SKF →
Active · founded 1907 · Sweden
Aktiebolaget SKF is the acknowledged leader of the world's rolling bearing industry.
AB Volvo →
Active · founded 1915 · Sweden
The largest company in Sweden in revenue terms and the biggest employer in that nation's private sector, AB Volvo is…
Investor AB →
Active · founded 1916 · Sweden
Total Assets: SEK 163.65 billion ($14.27 billion) (2003) Stock Exchanges: Stockholm Ticker Symbol: INVE NAIC: 551112…
ICA AB →
Active · founded 1917 · Sweden
Stock Index: Stockholm The ICA logo dominates the Swedish grocery-retail industry.
Vin & Spirit AB →
Active · founded 1917 · Sweden
Government-owned Vin & Spirit AB (V & S) lost its monopoly on the production, wholesale, export, and import of…
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson →
Active · founded 1918 · Sweden
Telefonaktiebolaget LM (Ericsson) is one of the world's largest telecommunications concerns with the largest customer…
Aktiebolaget Electrolux →
Active · founded 1919 · Sweden
To the average consumer, the name Electrolux says two things: vacuum cleaners and refrigerators.
Electrolux AB →
Active · founded 1919 · Sweden
Electrolux AB operates as the largest appliance manufacturer in the world with customers in more than 150 countries.
Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA →
Active · founded 1929 · Sweden
Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA (SCA for short) is one of Europe's leading forestry companies, specializing in…
The SAS Group →
Active · founded 1946 · Sweden
Ticker Symbols: SASDK; SASB.OL; SAS.ST NAIC: 481111 Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation; 481112 Scheduled Freight…
Hennes & Mauritz AB →
Active · founded 1947 · Sweden
With more than 550 stores in 12 countries across Europe, Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) has quickly become one of the…
Gambro AB →
Active · founded 1964 · Sweden
Sweden's Gambro AB specializes in renal care products, services, and equipment.
Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB →
Active · founded 1972 · Sweden
Total Assets: SKr 1.24 billion ($141.85 million)(2002) Stock Exchanges: Stockholm Ticker Symbol: SEBA NAIC: 522110…
Nobel Industries AB →
Active · founded 1984 · Sweden
Nobel Industries AB is one of Europe's leading manufacturers of specialty industrial chemicals, paints, and adhesives.
Cardo AB →
Active · founded 1985 · Sweden
Cardo AB has focused its efforts on building two world-leading companies: Cardo Door and Cardo Pump.
Svenska Handelsbanken AB →
Active · founded 1987 · Sweden
Total Assets: SKr 1.2 billion (US$123 million) (2002) Stock Exchanges: Stockholm Ticker Symbol: SHB NAIC: 522110…
Saab Automobile AB →
Active · founded 1990 · Sweden
Saab Automobile AB is a Swedish maker of passenger automobiles in the premium sector of the market.
Vattenfall AB →
Active · founded 1992 · Sweden
Sweden's Vattenfall AB is vying for a leading role in Europe's energy generation and transmission market.
NetCom Systems AB →
Active · founded 1993 · Sweden
NetCom Systems AB is poised to become Scandinavia's leading private provider of telecommunications services,…
Modern Times Group AB →
Active · founded 1995 · Sweden
Ticker Symbols: MTG MTGNY NAIC: 513120 Television Broadcasting; 513112 Radio Stations; 511110 Newspaper Publishers;…
Autoliv, Inc. →
Active · founded 1996 · Sweden
Autoliv, Inc.
FöreningsSparbanken AB →
Active · founded 1997 · Sweden
Total Assets: SEK 1.0 trillion ($146 billion) (2003) Stock Exchanges: Pink Sheets Berlin Ticker Symbols: FGSKY;…
Nordea AB →
Active · founded 1997 · Sweden
First off the starting block among pan-European banking mergers--a trend expected to boom in the early years of the…
Cloetta Fazer AB →
Defunct · founded 2000 · Sweden
Cloetta Fazer AB is the Nordic region's leading manufacturer of chocolates and other confectionery.
Observer AB →
Active · founded 2000 · Sweden
Observer AB is the aptly named parent of a group of companies that focus on monitoring media in various countries for…
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