Key Points
A lot has changed in the world since 1989. In that year, Seinfeld and The Simpsons had just premiered, while Nintendo launched the Game Boy. Taylor Swift hadn't even been born yet.
The world's most valuable companies also looked a lot different back then, with four of the world's five largest public companies being Japanese banks. ExxonMobil (then just "Exxon"), rounded off the list:
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| Company |
Market Cap |
| Industrial Bank of Japan |
$104.3 billion |
| Sumitomo Bank |
$73.3 billion |
| Fuji Bank |
$69.4 billion |
| Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank |
$60.0 billion |
| Exxon |
$63.8 billion |
Data source: Statista.
A large reason Japanese banks were valued so highly back then was the Japanese asset price bubble that lasted from 1986 to 1991. Today, the tide has shifted, and it's large tech stocks dominating the list.
| Company |
Market Cap |
| Nvidia |
$4.23 trillion |
| Microsoft |
$3.89 trillion |
| Apple |
$3.02 trillion |
| Alphabet |
$2.29 trillion |
| Amazon |
$2.27 trillion |
Data source: CompaniesMarketCap.
Aside from the industry shift, what stands out is just how much these tech companies are worth compared to their 1989 counterparts. Even adjusted for inflation, the Industrial Bank of Japan's market cap increases to approximately $270 billion in today's dollars -- Nvidia is worth over 15 times that much. Part of the reason for this difference has to do with how long these tech companies have been in the market, allowing their valuations to grow over time. Another part is investors are rewarding future growth and market dominance over what many may consider fundamentals (for better or worse).
Tech stocks will likely dominate the "most valued companies" list for quite some time. The only non-tech companies to crack the top 10 as of this writing are state-owned energy company Saudi Aramco and Berkshire Hathaway.
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Stefon Walters has positions in Apple and Microsoft. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Nintendo and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
