FORTUNE UNVEILS 2025 SOUTHEAST ASIA 500
2nd annual Fortune list has Singapore's Trafigura at No. 1, as the energy sector dominates; Malaysia's NationGate claims fastest growing by revenue
Ranks of female CEOs at Southeast Asia 500 companies increases to nearly 40, up 28% from last year
Indonesia has the most companies, 109, on the Southeast Asia 500 but Singapore companies lead in revenue, profits, and assets
SINGAPORE, June 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Fortune today unveils the 2025 Southeast Asia 500 rankings, the second annual list of the largest companies in the region, ranked by revenue for the 2024 fiscal year. Fortune's focus on Southeast Asia comes as the region emerges as a resilient growth engine for the global economy, playing an increasingly important role in global supply chains, capturing manufacturing capacity shifting from China due to heightened tariffs and trade tensions.
The seven countries in last year's inaugural Southeast Asia 500 list—Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Cambodia—return in 2025, and continue to make their mark on the region's economy. Indonesia leads with 109 companies, while Thailand follows with 100. Malaysia has 92 companies on the list, surpassing Singapore's 81. Vietnam's presence on the list has grown to 76, while the Philippines contributes 40 and Cambodia rounds out the list with two.
Singapore-headquartered commodities trader Trafigura earned the No. 1 spot on the Fortune Southeast Asia 500 for a second year, generating more than $243 billion in revenue in 2024, followed by Thailand's PTT (No. 2), Indonesia's Pertamina (No. 3) and Singapore's food and agribusiness powerhouses—Wilmar (No. 4) and Olam (No. 5). The top five companies generated nearly $516 billion in revenue, or 28% of all 500 companies combined.
Together, the top 10 generated $660 billion—36% of the list's total revenue—while the top 20 accounted for $836 billion, nearly half the combined revenue of all 500 companies. Notably, Singapore-based companies generated $637 billion in 2024, underscoring the city-state's role as a regional business hub and accounting for just over a third of the Southeast Asia 500's total revenue. Collectively, companies on the 2025 list generated $1.82 trillion in revenue in 2024, up from $1.79 trillion the year before. The minimum revenue threshold to be included on the 2025 list was $349.4 million.
"Fortune's interest in the region reflects Southeast Asia's growing importance as an engine of global growth," says Clay Chandler, Executive Editor, Asia. "The region has become a crucial manufacturing and export hub, which is drawing significant capital flows. This momentum has been further fueled by Trump-era tariffs, which have reshaped global trade dynamics and driven a shift towards Southeast Asia."
Energy – whether resource extraction, power generation, or electrical transmission—is the dominant sector on the 2025 list, accounting for almost a third of its total revenue. Thai oil refiner and energy company, Bangchak, breaks into this year's top 20 with a 47% jump in revenue. Financial firms represent Southeast Asia's second-largest sector. Significantly, thirteen banks and financial firms are among the top 20 most profitable companies with Singapore's DBS leading—both in terms of revenue and earnings—for a second year.
In his introduction to the new list in the June/July issue of Fortune Asia magazine, editor, Asia, Nick Gordon notes, the Fortune Southeast Asia 500 provides "a snapshot of a region ready to take advantage of global supply chain shifts and booming industries like mining, EVs, and AI—even as U.S. tariff policy threatens to roll back some of last year's gains."
Fast-growers in revenue terms included newcomers to the list—Malaysian precision manufacturing company NationGate, Indonesian mining and energy firm, Petrindo Jaya Kreasi and Vietnam's transport infrastructure and automotive services company, Tasco JSC, as well as returning companies such as the Philippines' online gaming firm, Digiplus Interactive, and travel and transportation companies like Singapore aviation catering and logistics firm SATS, Changi Airport Group and Airports of Thailand. In 2024, the top 20 fast-growers captured strong tailwinds from rebounding tourism, resource demand (coal, nickel, energy), digital transformation, and industrial growth in Southeast Asia.
In a positive sign for female leadership in the region, Fortune's analysts noted there are 37 female CEOs leading Southeast Asia 500 companies, up from 29 reported last year. There are also 37 women holding the position of chairman. This growth in diversity, alongside the ten CEOs in their 30s, underscores the region's evolving leadership landscape. The average age of the chief executives leading the 500 companies is 58. In total, the 2025 Southeast Asia 500 companies employ more than 6.3 million people.
The 2025 Fortune Southeast Asia 500 list and stories are available internationally on Fortune.com/asia and on newsstands across Asia starting today, June 17. The list and rankings can be viewed at https://fortune.com/asia/ranking/southeast-asia-500/2025/.
About Fortune
Fortune is a global multi-platform media company built on a legacy of trusted, award-winning reporting and information for those who want to make business better. Independently owned, Fortune tells the stories of the world's biggest companies and their leaders as well as a new generation of innovators who are moving business forward. Digitally and in print, Fortune measures corporate performance through rigorous benchmarks, and holds companies accountable, in regions around the world. Its iconic rankings include Fortune 500, Fortune Global 500, Most Powerful Women, and World's Most Admired Companies. Fortune builds world-class communities by convening industry thought leaders for exclusive summits and conferences, including the Fortune Global Forum and Brainstorm Tech. For more information, visit fortune.com.
SOURCE Fortune
Share this article