M&A between giants: the fastest way to dominate the world economy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to help a reader to understand how ExxonMobil has become the largest company in the world, by studying the most important event that contributed to ExxonMobil's dominance: Exxon's acquisition of Mobil.Design/methodology/approach – The paper takes the form of a case study.Findings – The authors used the ExxonMobil case to evidence factors affecting cross‐border M&A's success, from strategic, financial and operative perspectives.Originality/value – This article contributes to the advancement of cross border M&A studies.