Vitol

Vitol is a Swiss-based Dutch multinational energy and commodity trading company that was founded in Rotterdam in 1966 by Henk Viëtor and Jacques Detiger. Though trading, logistics and distribution are at the core of its business, these are complemented by refining, shipping, terminals, exploration and production, power generation, and retail businesses. Vitol has 40 offices worldwide and its largest operations are in Geneva, Houston, London, and Singapore.

With revenues of $505 billion in 2022, Vitol is the largest independent energy trader in the world, and would be the second-largest company worldwide as measured by revenue on the Fortune Global 500 list. Given the secrecy Vitol maintains around all its business activities and the limited nature of its statutory disclosures, it is excluded from rankings. The company, however, does provide some more financial information to its lenders and to a few other entities with which it trades. The company ships more than 350 million tonnes of crude oil per year and controls 250 supertankers and other vessels to move it around the world. On average it handles more than 7.6 million barrels a day of oil and products, roughly equivalent to the daily consumption of Japan, the world's fourth-largest oil consumer after the United States, China, and India.

Vitol is a privately held company by about 400 partners who are current and former employees, who are known for their intense culture of privacy and secrecy from both competitors and the general public. It is reported that Vitol made a payout of $2.9 billion to all its partners in 2021