Mercedes-Benz Group AG (formerlyDaimler-Benz,DaimlerChrysler, andDaimler) is aGermanmultinationalautomotive company headquartered inStuttgart,Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of the world's leading car manufacturers. Daimler-Benz was formed with the merger ofBenz & Cie., the world's oldest car company,[4] andDaimler Motoren Gesellschaft in 1926. The company was renamed DaimlerChrysler upon the acquisition of the American automobile manufacturer,Chrysler Corporation in 1998, it was renamed to Daimler upon the divestment of Chrysler in 2007. In 2021, Daimler was the second-largest German automaker and the sixth-largest worldwide by production. In February 2022, Daimler was renamed Mercedes-Benz Group as part of a transaction thatspun-off its commercial vehicle segment as an independent company,Daimler Truck.
By unit sales, the Mercedes-Benz Group is the tenth-largest car manufacturer in the world; shipping two million passenger vehicles in 2021[5] and by revenue the seventh-largest car manufacturer worldwide in 2023.[6] Also in 2023, the company was ranked 42nd in theForbes Global 2000.[7] The group provides financial services through itsMercedes-Benz Mobility arm. The company is a component of theEuro Stoxx 50stock market index.[8] The central company headquarters, the Mercedes-Benz offices, a car assembly plant, theMercedes-Benz Museum and theMercedes-Benz Arena are situated in the Mercedes-Benz complex in Stuttgart.
The Mercedes-Benz Group origin is in anAgreement of Mutual Interest signed on 1 May 1924 betweenBenz & Cie. (founded in 1883 byCarl Benz) andDaimler Motoren Gesellschaft (founded in 1890 byGottlieb Daimler andWilhelm Maybach). Both companies continued to manufacture their separate automobile and internal combustion enginemarques until 28 June 1926, when Benz & Cie. and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft formally merged – becoming Daimler-Benz AG (Aktiengesellschaft) – and agreed that thereafter, all of the factories would use the brand name of "Mercedes-Benz" on their automobiles. The inclusion of the name Mercedes in the new brand name honored the most important model series of DMG automobiles, theMercedes series, which were designed and built byWilhelm Maybach. They derived their name from a 1900 engine named after thedaughter ofEmil Jellinek. Jellinek became one of DMG's directors in 1900, ordered a small number ofmotor racing cars built to his specifications by Maybach, stipulated that the engine must be namedDaimler-Mercedes, and made the new automobile famous through motorsports. That race car later became known as theMercedes 35 hp. The first of the series of production models bearing the name Mercedes had been produced by DMG in 1902. Jellinek left the DMG board of directors in 1909.
The name of Daimler as a marque of automobiles had been given byGottlieb Daimler[dubious –discuss] for use by other companies. It is or was used principally byDaimler Motor Company andAustro-Daimler laterSteyr-Daimler-Puch but also, very briefly byDaimler Manufacturing Company andPanhard-Daimler, and others. The new company, Daimler-Benz, did not obtain consent to include Daimler in its brand name and used the name Mercedes to represent the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft interest.Karl Benz remained as a member of the board of directors of Daimler-Benz AG until his death in 1929.
Prior to World War II, Mercedes Benz gave Adolf Hitler dealer discounts. Once WW II began, Mercedes Benz production lines were almost entirely dedicated to manufacturing for the Nazi Regime.[9] DuringWorld War II, Daimler-Benz had over 60,000 concentration camp prisoners and other forced laborers to build machinery. After the war, Daimler admitted to its links and coordination with theNazi government.
The final logo of Daimler-Benz AG, used until its merger with Chrysler Corporation in 1998
In 1966, Maybach-Motorenbau GmbH merged with Mercedes-Benz Motorenbau Friedrichshafen GmbH to form Maybach Mercedes-Benz Motorenbau GmbH, under partial ownership by Daimler-Benz. The company is renamed Motoren und Turbinen-Union Friedrichshafen GmbH (MTU Friedrichshafen) in 1969.
In 1989, Daimler-Benz InterServices AG (Debis) was created to handle data processing, financial and insurance services, and real estate management for the Daimler group.[10]
In 1995,MTU Friedrichshafen became a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler-Benz.
In a so-called "merger of equals," or "marriage made in heaven," according to its then CEO and architectJürgen E. Schrempp,[11] Daimler-Benz, and United States–based automobile manufacturerChrysler Corporation, the smallest of the main three American automakers, merged in 1998 in an exchange of shares[12] and formed DaimlerChrysler AG. Valued atUS$38 billion, it was the world's largest ever cross-border deal.[13]
The terms of the merger allowed Daimler-Benz's non-automotive businesses such as Daimler-Benz InterServices AG, "debis AG" for short, to continue to pursue their respective strategies of expansion.debis AG reported revenues of $8.6 bn (DM 15.5 bn) in 1997.[14][10]
The merger was contentious with investors launching lawsuits over whether the transaction was the 'merger of equals' that senior management claimed or actually amounted to a Daimler-Benz takeover of Chrysler. Aclass action investor lawsuit was settled in August 2003 for US$300 million while a suit by billionaire investor activistKirk Kerkorian was dismissed on 7 April 2005.[15] The transaction claimed the job of its architect, Chairman Jürgen E. Schrempp, who resigned at the end of 2005 in response to the fall of the company's share price following the transaction.[16]
Another issue of contention is whether the merger delivered promised synergies and successfully integrated the two businesses.Martin H. Wiggers' concept of a platform strategy, like the VW Group's, was implemented only for a few models, so the synergy effects in development and production were low.[17] As late as 2002, DaimlerChrysler appeared to run two independent product lines. Later that year, the company launched products that did integrate elements from both sides of the company, including theChrysler Crossfire, which was based on the Mercedes SLK platform and utilized Mercedes's 3.2 L V6, and theDodge Sprinter/Freightliner Sprinter, a re-badgedMercedes-Benz Sprinter van.
In 2000, DaimlerChrysler acquired theDetroit Diesel Corporation and placed its on-highway division under Daimler Trucks North America. The off-highway division was placed under MTU Friedrichshafen to form MTU America. Detroit Diesel branding has been maintained by DTNA and MTU America. In 2005, MTU-Friedrichshafen was sold to the Swedish investment firm EQT Partners. That same year, DaimlerChryslerentered into an alliance withMitsubishi Motors Corporation in an effort to reach the Asian market.[18] The alliance resulted in the platform sharing between the2002-2013 Colt andfirst-generation Smart Forfour, but the declining performance of Mitsubishi led DaimlerChrysler to sell its shares back by 2004.[19]
In 2006, Chrysler reported losses of US$1.5 billion. It then announced plans to lay off 13,000 employees in mid-February 2007, close a major assembly plant and reduce production at other plants in order to restore profitability by 2008. That same year, Chrysler was overtaken byToyota in the US market, leaving it outside of the traditional "Big Three" of US automakers for the first time.[20]
DaimlerChrysler had reportedly approached other carmakers and investment groups to sell Chrysler in early 2007. General Motors was reported to be a suitor,[21] but Daimler agreed to sell the Chrysler unit toCerberus Capital Management in May 2007 for US$6 billion and completed the sale on 3 August 2007.[22] The original agreement stated that Cerberus would take an 80.1 percent stake in the new company, Chrysler Holding LLC. DaimlerChrysler changed its name to Daimler AG and retained the remaining 19.9% stake in the separated Chrysler LLC.[23]
The terms saw Daimler pay Cerberus US$650 million to take Chrysler and associated liabilities off its hands. Of the US$7.4 billion purchase price,Cerberus Capital Management was to invest US$5 billion in Chrysler Holdings and US$1.05 billion in Chrysler's financial unit. The de-merged Daimler AG received US$1.35 billion directly from Cerberus but directly invested US$2 billion in Chrysler itself. Chrysler filed bankruptcy in 2009.[24]
In May 2010, theShenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co., Ltd., trading as "Denza" was established betweenBYD and Daimler[26] to produce luxury electric vehicles.[27]
In November 2014, Daimler announced it would acquire 25 percent of Italian motorcycle producerMV Agusta for an undisclosed fee.[28] MV Holding acquired the 25 percent of MV Agusta back from Daimler in December 2017.[29]
On 3 August 2015,Nokia announced that it had reached a deal to sell itsHere digital maps division to a consortium of three German automakers—BMW, Daimler AG, andVolkswagen Group, for €2.8 billion.[30] This was seen as an indication that the automakers were interested in automated cars.
In 2017, Daimler announced a series of acquisitions and partnerships with car startups focused on car sharing, in a move towards what it sees as the next generation of car ownership and usage.[31] Part of its corporate strategy is to "transition from being an automobile manufacturer to a mobility services provider".[31]
In April 2017 it announced a partnership withVia, a New York–based ride-sharing app, to launch a new ride-sharing service across Europe.[32] In September, it was announced that Daimler had led a fundraising round for car-sharing start upTuro, which is a platform that lets owners rent their vehicles out to other users.[33] It also acquired Flinc, a German startup that has built an app for peer-to-peer-style carpooling, has invested in Storedot,Careem,Blacklane, andFlixBus. It has also acquiredcar2go and mytaxi (nowFree Now).[31]
Li Shufu of Chinese automobile manufacturerGeely took a 9.69% stake in the company, through Tenaciou3 Prospect Investment Limited, in February 2018, making it the company's largest single shareholder.[3] Geely is already known from its ownership ofVolvo Car Corporation. In September 2018, Daimler invested $155 million in US-based electric bus and its battery management technology manufacturerProterra.[34]
In July 2019,BAIC Group purchased a 5% stake in Daimler, which is a reciprocal shareholder inBAIC's Hong Kong listed subsidiary.
In September 2020, the company was fined 875 million dollars by the United States for having violated theClean Air Act.[37] It agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle all related court actions.
In February 2021, Daimler said it planned to rename itself adopting the name of its flagship marque, Mercedes-Benz, and spun off its heavy commercial vehicles unit,Daimler Truck, into a separatelisted company.[38][39][40] Daimler Truck is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and its first trading day was on 10 December 2021.[41][42][43][44]
In the 2021 review ofWIPO's annualWorld Intellectual Property Indicators Daimler ranked 8th in the world, with 65 of its designs in industrial design registrations being published under theHague System during 2020.[45] This position is up on its previous 10th-place ranking in 2019.[46]
On 28 January 2022, CEO Ola Källenius announced that Daimler will be rebranded as Mercedes-Benz to pursue a higher valuation for the company as it shifts deeper into high-tech electric vehicles.[47][48][49] On 1 February 2022, Daimler officially changed its registered company name to Mercedes-Benz Group AG.[50][51][52]
Sales of Mercedes-Benz Group vehicles in 2023 – 2,491,600 (+1.5%). Sales of superior products increased:Mercedes-Maybach (+19%),G-Class (+11%) andMercedes-AMG (+4%). Fully electric Mercedes-Benz passenger car sales rose by 73% during the year. Only Core segment sales declined by 2%, with 1,096,800 units sold due to supplier bottlenecks and the transition to the newE-Class.[53]
Ola Källenius became the Chairman of Mercedes-Benz Group and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars on 22 May 2019.[56] As of May 2018[update], the members of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG were:[57]
Ola Källenius: Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Mercedes-Benz AG.
On 5 March 2015, Daimler AG announced a 1,200-job package to the North Charleston region for its van plant, to allow the company to start manufacturing Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans from scratch to meet demand in North America. From 2010, these vans were set up in Germany, then shipped to the United States partially disassembled for reassembly to avoid import tariffs. A Daimler official said that the Sprinter's popularity in North America was making that process less efficient. The North Charleston plant had been employing only 100 workers. The Sprinter is available on the U.S. market as a panel van, crew bus and chassis in several variants with three lengths and roof heights, six-cylinder diesel or gasoline engines. The Sprinter has been assembled and sold in the United States since 2001.[62]
The Mercedes-Benz Group has a worldwide network of production plants and research centers. The following list describes all locations around the world.
From 1986 to 1989, Daimler produced theMercedes-Benz W123 (200 and 230E) sedans in China under a joint venture withFAW Group, with 828 units assembled in Changchun.[68][69]
Beijing Jeep was a joint venture between Chrysler andBAIC Motor. After DaimlerChrysler was formed, its legal name was changed toBeijing Benz in 2004, and it started producing Mercedes-Benz models in 2006.[70][71] The partnership has continued during the Daimler AG era.
In February 2013, Daimler acquired a 12% stake in BAIC Motor, becoming the first western car manufacturer to own a stake in a Chinese company.[72]
Daimler works with China'sBeiqi Foton (a subsidiary of BAIC) to build Auman trucks.[73]
Between 1990 and 2010 SsangYong partnered withDaimler-Benz. The deal was for SsangYong to develop anSUV withMercedes-Benz technology. This was supposedly to allow SsangYong to gain footholds in new markets without having to build their own infrastructure (utilizing existing Mercedes-Benz networks) while giving Mercedes a competitor in the then-boomingSUV market.[74] This resulted in theMusso, which was sold first by Mercedes-Benz and later by SsangYong.[75] SsangYong further benefited from this alliance, long afterDaimler-Benz stopped selling the Musso, producing a badge engineered version of theMercedes-Benz MB100, theIstana and using Daimler designs in many other models, including the second-generationKorando (engine and transmission), theRexton (transmission),[76] theChairman H (chassis and transmission)[77] and theKyron (transmission).[78] Ssangyong Also Partnered with Daewoo Motors to sell the chairman, Korando, Istana, and Musso to the rest of South Korea and Asia, Ssangyong later partnered with SAIC (Roewe) to rebadge theChairman W in china as the Roewe R95/850 and theKyron asRoewe W5 and also use theMercedes-Benz 5G-Tronic transmission for the W5, SAIC has been working with Daimler since the 1964 with theShanghai SH760 using a modifiedW121 chassis.Micro another company that rebadged Ssangyong's like Kyron, Actyon and Rexton using Mercedes-Benz engines.
Daimler AG and the utility companyRWE AG were set in 2009 to begin a joint electric car andcharging station test project in the German capital,Berlin, called "E-Mobility Berlin."[82]
Following trials in 2007 and then withTesla in 2009,[83][84] Daimler is building a productionSmart electric drive car using Tesla's battery technology.[85] Daimler temporarily invested in Tesla, saving it from bankruptcy.[86]Daimler's joint venture with BYD[87] has resulted in the creation of the new brandDenza.
In 2016, Daimler subsidiary ACCUMOTIVE announced their stationary batteries, to store up to 20 kWh ofsolar power for later use.[88] Daimler plans to invest €1.5 billion in battery technology,[89][90] and unveiled a factory inKamenz in May 2017.[91]
In September 2019, Daimler redirected itsinternal combustion engine development initiatives to focus onelectric vehicle technologies,[35] leaving electric propulsion rather less of an "alternative" and more the Daimler mainline. Their Research and Development department has developed a compostable battery that uses graphene-based organic cell chemistry. This means that no rare, toxic metals are needed for the battery, which makes it 100% recyclable.[92]
Since 2019, fully electric cars have been released through the Mercedes-EQ brand.[93]
Daimler has been involved withfuel cell vehicle development for some time, with a number of research and concept vehicles shown and demonstrated, the first being the 2002Mercedes-Benz F-Cell car and theMercedes-Benz Citaro hydrogen bus. In 2013, the Renault-Nissan/Daimler alliance was joined by Ford to further develop the fuel cell technology with an aim for production by 2017.[94][95]
On 16 November 2009, Daimler andAabar Investments purchased a 75.1% stake inBrawn GP (Daimler holding 45.1%). The company was rebranded asMercedes GP with its base inBrackley, UK andRoss Brawn remaining team principal.[99] The Brawn purchase led to Daimler selling back its stake inMcLaren in stages, completed in 2011.[100] Mercedes continued to provide sponsorship and engines to McLaren until 2014.[101]
Prior to the 2011 season, Daimler and Aabar Investments purchased the remaining 24.9% stake owned by the team management in February 2011.[102] In November 2012, Aabar Investments sold its remaining shares, leaving the team (rebranded as MercedesAMGPetronas F1 Team) wholly Daimler-owned.[103]
TheO-Bahn system was conceived byDaimler-Benz to enable buses to avoid traffic congestion by sharingtram tunnels in the German city ofEssen.[106] However, the project did not materialise there; the projectwas built in the Australian city ofAdelaide.
On 1 April 2010, Daimler AG's German and Russiansubsidiaries each pleaded guilty to two counts of bribery charges brought by theU.S. Justice Department and theU.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The parent company made a US$185 millionsettlement, but the company and its Chinese subsidiary remained subject to a two-yeardeferred prosecution agreement requiring further cooperation with regulators, adherence to internal controls and meeting other terms before final sentencing. Daimler would face harsher penalties should it fail to meet the terms of the agreement during the two-year period.
U.S. prosecutors accused key executives of Daimler, Daimler subsidiaries, and Daimleraffiliates of illegally showering foreign officials with money and gifts between 1998 and 2008 to secure government contracts around the world. The investigation for the case revealed that Daimler improperly paid some $56 million in bribes related to more than 200 transactions in at least 22 countries (including China, Russia, Turkey, Hungary, Greece, Latvia, Serbia and Montenegro, Egypt, and Nigeria, among other places) that, in return, awarded the company $1.9 billion in revenue and at least $91.4 million in illegal profits.[107]
The SEC case was sparked in 2004 after David Bazzetta, a former auditor at then DaimlerChrysler Corp, filed awhistleblower complaint after he was fired for raising questions about bank accounts controlled by Mercedes-Benz units in South America.[108] Bazzetta alleged that he learned in a July 2001 corporate audit executive committee meeting inStuttgart that business units "continued to maintain secret bank accounts to bribe foreign government officials", though the company knew the practice violated U.S. laws.
In another attempt to silence Bazzetta, Daimler later offered to settle his termination of employment suit out of court and he eventually accepted a settlement. But Daimler's strategy with Bazzetta proved to be a failure as the U.S. criminal investigation for violating anti-bribery laws was already underway in what has been one of the most wide-ranging cases brought against a foreign corporation.[107]
According to the charges, the bribes were frequently made by over-invoicing customers and paying the excess back to top government officials or their proxies. The bribes also took the form of luxury European vacations, armored Mercedes vehicles for high-ranking government officials and a birthday gift to the dictator ofTurkmenistan, Turkmenbashi (Saparmurat Niyazov), including a golden box and 10,000 copies of his personalmanifesto,Ruhnama, translated into German.[109][110]
Investigators also found that the firm violated the terms of the United Nations'Oil-for-Food Programme withIraq by givingkickbacks worth 10% of the contract values to officials within the Iraqi government, then led bySaddam Hussein. The SEC said the company made more than $4 million in profit from the sale of vehicles and spare parts in the corrupt oil-for-food deals.[107]
U.S. prosecutors further alleged that some bribes were paid throughshell companies based in the U.S. "In some cases Daimler wired these improper payments to U.S. bank accounts or to the foreign bank accounts of U.S. shell companies in order to transmit the bribe", the court papers said.[111]
Prosecutors said that Daimler engaged in a "long-standing practice" of paying bribes, due in part to a corporate culture that encouraged the practice.
"Usingoffshore bank accounts, third-party agents and deceptive pricing practices, [Daimler AG, its subsidiaries and its affiliates] saw foreign bribery as a way of doing business," saidMythili Raman, a principal deputy in the Justice Department's criminal division.[112]
"It is no exaggeration to describe corruption and bribe-paying at Daimler as a standard business practice",Robert Khuzami, director of the SEC's enforcement division, said in a statement.[113]
As per the agreement with prosecutors, the two Daimler subsidiaries admitted to knowingly violating theForeign Corrupt Practices Act, which bars companies and their officials from paying bribes to foreign officials to win business.[114] The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act applies to any company that lists its shares on U.S.stock exchanges. Daimler AG was listed with the symbol "DAI" on theNew York Stock Exchange, giving the Justice Department jurisdiction over the German car maker's payments in countries around the globe. JudgeRichard J. Leon of the United States District Court in Washington, D.C., approved the plea agreement and settlement, calling it a "just resolution." Daimler AG agreed to settle for $2.2 billion to US and California state regulators.[115]
In March 2024, workers at the Mercedes-Benz plant inTuscaloosa County, Alabama filed charges against the company with the USNational Labor Relations Board (NLRB), accusing the company of illegally disciplining workers at the plant in retaliation for organizing with theUnited Auto Workers (UAW) labor union.[116] In May 2024, following the loss of aunionization vote at the plant, the UAW filed a formal complaint with the NLRB seeking a new election due to what it called "wanton lawlessness" on the part of Mercedes-Benz in the run up to the election, with the UAW accusing the company of holding anti-unioncaptive audience meetings, targeting pro-union workers for drug tests, and illegally terminating UAW supporters.[117][118]
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