Foreign-owned businesses in Italy pass 677,000, with North-South divide widening
Foreign entrepreneurs now run 12% of all registered businesses in Italy, after a surge of more than 16,000 companies in the first half of 2026 brought the total to 677,188. The figures, compiled by InfoCamere through the Futurae project promoted by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies together with Unioncamere, show 37,140 new businesses started against 21,043 closures.
The growth reveals a structural shift. By the end of 2025, 35% of foreign-owned businesses had been operating for over ten years, a sign of long-term consolidation rather than transient commercial activity. Limited liability companies — società di capitale — drove much of the expansion, rising 11% over twelve months to exceed 160,000 registered entities, pointing to greater formalisation.
North-West gains, Mezzogiorno loses ground
The geographic split is sharp. Lombardy and the broader North-West host 32.7% of all foreign-owned enterprises and recorded the fastest annual growth at +1.5%. By contrast, southern Italy posted a 3.6% decline, with Campania and Calabria showing the steepest falls.
Prato remains Italy's most foreign-business-intensive province. Foreign entrepreneurs run 33.7% of businesses there, with Chinese nationals accounting for 67.2% of individual foreign proprietors in the area. Trieste follows at 20.8%, with Imperia — newcomer to the top three — at 18.8%, displacing Firenze from the podium.
Moroccan, Romanian and Chinese owners dominate individual businesses
Individual businesses — imprese individuali — still make up roughly 70% of the total. Among these, Moroccan nationals lead with 53,364 proprietors, followed by Romanians at 52,541 and Chinese at 50,166. Together these groups represent 32.4% of all foreign individual business owners.
Albania, Bangladesh and Pakistan account for a further 20%, while Egypt, Nigeria and Senegal comprise 10.5% combined. Each community shows distinct sectoral preferences. Moroccan entrepreneurs concentrate in retail trade, with high concentrations in the Strait of Messina area — Catanzaro, Reggio Calabria and Messina. Romanian proprietors focus on construction, with clusters around Viterbo, Torino and Cremona. Chinese owners specialise in manufacturing and recreational services, achieving record concentrations in Prato and Fermo, where they represent 27.3% of foreign individual proprietors in the latter.
What this means for Italy's economy
The endurance of these businesses matters for local economies. Almost 700,000 enterprises represent tax revenue, local employment and services in sectors from construction to hospitality. That one in eight registered companies answers to a foreign national suggests a settled, embedded presence — not provisional or marginal activity.
The North-South divergence, however, raises questions. While national policy through the single Zone of Economic Development — ZES Unica — offers tax credits and incentives to attract investment to the Mezzogiorno, the 3.6% contraction in foreign-owned businesses suggests local economic conditions may be outweighing available support. The data does not specify causes, leaving the reasons for the southern decline open: economic opportunity elsewhere, regulatory friction, lack of access to finance, or simply that entrepreneurs are following demand where it is strongest — in the industrialised North-West.
