Rank: 18 (Previous rank: 24)
CEO: Baudouin Prot Employees: 182,459 Address: 16 Blvd. des Italiens Paris 75009 Country: France Website: www.bnpparibas.com BNP Paribas has had an up-and-down year. After Europe’s credit crisis spun out of control, Fitch downgraded the French financial service giant’s debt rating. But BNP still managed to top recent profit forecasts. It moves up six notches on our list this year.
Changes are afoot: BNP recently reshuffled its private equity division while taking on an array of acquisitions. BNP also plans to increase its pool of investment bankers by 20% in the next two years, hoping to break into the top five European investment banks by 2012. -- A.K. Subscribe to Fortune Magazine Is BNP Paribas a great company, or what?
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| Company | 2009 Number of Employees |
|---|---|
| Wal-Mart Stores | 2,100,000 |
| China National Petroleum | 1,649,992 |
| State Grid | 1,533,800 |
| Company | 2009 Profits ($ millions) |
|---|---|
| Gazprom | $24,556 |
| Exxon Mobil | $19,280 |
| Industrial & Commercial Bank of China | $18,832 |
