Megacorps

The economy of 2095 is dominated by the "Megacorps", corporations larger than any that existed in the 20th Century. Most got their start as state-run enterprises of one of the four regional blocs in the post WWIII era, eventually being privatized once the global situation began to improve. While most Megacorps are known for one or two primary lines of business, usually the one that they started with, nearly all have diversified extensively. The situation is further complicated by the mutually interlocking systems of ownership. The biggest dozen Megacorps each wield the power of a nation state. Indeed, many of them offer their employees a defacto alternative form of citizenship. Instead of being "French", or "Peruvian", or "Sudanese", a person could hold "Biomundo" citizenship, and be treated as a foreign national in his country of birth. This has both advantages and disadvantages. What follows is a list of the biggest, most influential, or simply best known Megacorps.

• Fairbarne-Willis Industries (FWI): Perhaps the most powerful of the Megacorps, FWI is owned by a vastly powerful Australian ranching family. FWI is involved in nearly every form of heavy industry; mining, power generation, weaponry, vehicle construction, consumer goods, mass media, and finance. From its headquarters in Sydney, the leadership of FWI controls an empire of its own, manipulating politics and events for its own labyrinthine schemes.

• Worldspan Products: Worldspan Products produces low cost, middling quality consumer goods, foodstuffs, and mass media for commoners throughout the solar system. It has production lines almost everywhere, and its dozens of product brands can be seen on almost every shelf in human space. Associated with cheapness, not quality, Worldspan has factories all over the world, mostly outside of the Superstates.

• Ling-Suharno: The dominant SACPA Megacorp, Ling Suharno was founded by the ruling Triad of Singapore before the Third World War War. Ling Suharno is the second largest Megacorp, involved in banking, construction, power generation, computers, mass media, advanced materials, and consumer goods. They are headquartered in Singapore, the capital of SACPA. They are also well known for their funding and support of traditional Chinese religion and culture, maintaining their cultural distinctiveness in the face of the heterogeneity of SACPA.

• Biomundo: They focus on food production, pharmaceuticals, and genetic engineering. Headquartered on an artificial island in the Atlantic off the Brazilian coast, Biomundo has a somewhat disturbing reputation due to their involvement in lazurogenesis and their rumored ties to Provolution.

• Durham-Blackwood: Durham-Blackwood is one of the smaller Megacorps, one of the few in England, It devotes itself to a policy of racial harmony and a generally progressive agenda. Their business is centered on banking and mass-media, with sidelines in vehicle production, consumer goods, and highly advanced robotics. Among all of the Megacorps, Durham-Blackwood is the most popular, due to intense and aggressive efforts by their public relations department.

• Devaraja Foods: The only Megacorp of note from South Asia, this SACPA-based firm is focused on food production, aquaculture, and consumer goods. The owner and CEO, Rajiv Halanvishal, is the founder of a religion based on Hindu principles of meditation and reincarnation. His company is run by the precepts he outlines in the "White Book", a lengthy work of morals and philosophy. Devaraja is well known for its omnipresent humanitarian efforts and progressive agenda, as it spends billions on recovery efforts in Asia.

• Hoshi-Matsuda: A top line electronics firm based in Japan, Hoshi-Matsuda is best known for its high quality premium electronics and energy weaponry. Most of its products are expensive status items, including its computers.

• Orbus Space: Orbus Space is the largest single transportation company, accounting for nearly 30% of all air and space transport in the solar system. They also manufacture spaceship components and dabble in military equipment for aircraft.