What was the first billion-dollar merger in US history, formed in 1901?

The first billion-dollar merger in U.S. business history formed U.S. Steel in 1901.

J. P. Morgan organized the combination of Andrew Carnegie’s Carnegie Steel with Federal Steel, National Steel and several related steel and iron companies. The United States Steel Corporation was incorporated on March 2, 1901, with authorized capitalization of $1.4 billion—an unprecedented figure for an industrial company.

The wording sometimes causes confusion: U.S. Steel is often called the first billion-dollar company rather than simply the first billion-dollar merger. Its initial purchase and capitalization figures were discussed differently by contemporary sources, but the company’s creation through a massive 1901 consolidation is the canonical answer.

U.S. Steel initially controlled roughly two-thirds of American steel production. Charles M. Schwab became its first president, while Elbert H. Gary later became its dominant chairman. The deal symbolized the rise of large-scale corporate consolidation in the Gilded Age.