Unknown Multinational Enterprises: Top MNEs from Slovenia

Even a decade ago, discussing Slovene multinational enterprises (MNEs) in Slovenia would have been akin to swearing. MNEs were perceived as the “bad guys,” transferring profits abroad, hiding, and creating unbalanced development. MNEs were considered responsible for many of the country’s economic problems and for leading to a culture of political dependency. MNEs were synonymous with large firms from Western industrialized countries, exploiting other (frequently less-developed) countries. Until very recently, Slovenia’s own MNEs—that is, those originating in Slovenia and operating abroad—did not feature in public debates. Neoclassical thinking was also prevalent in academia during the 1990s: investing abroad was considered unpatriotic because capital was needed at home (Svetličič 1996, 4). As recently as 2008 (following the “Top 25 Slovene MNEs” press release by Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment (2008)), several major Slovene newspapers sought to interview the authors on whether Slovene firms were, in fact, MNEs, as the general belief has been that Slovenia does not have MNEs.