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Corporate Conglomerates: Advantages, Disadvantages, Successes and Failures, Including Case Studies of General Electric and Berkshire Hathaway

Abstract

This article discusses the rise and fall of corporate structures commonly referred to as “conglomerates.” They represent a collection of different companies, either in distinct industries or concentrated in one industry, under a corporate umbrella. Corporate conglomerates entail both positive and negative features. Highlighted in this discussion are two famous conglomerates, General Electric and Berkshire Hathaway, which have had distinctly different outcomes.

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Author

Portrait image of Bruce Ortwine
Bruce Ortwine
General Counsel (retired), Americas; Adviser, Global Legal and Compliance (Retired), Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Limited and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc., USA

Bruce Ortwine General Counsel, Americas, Advisor, Global Legal and Compliance for Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Limited and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. (Retired)

Company

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Limited and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. logo

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Limited and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc.

SMTB is the largest trust bank in Asia and a major international bank with offices throughout Asia, Europe and the U.S. Its parent holding company, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. is a financial conglomerate with a variety of financial institution subsidiaries, including in the banking, asset management, real estate brokerage and leasing sectors.

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