Czech outward foreign direct investment more than quadrupled between 2014 and 2024 to about $74 billion, the biggest gain in the European Union after Luxembourg and Romania. Michal Strnad, who made his fortune from the arms industry, recently acquired a stake in Italian tire giant Pirelli and listed his defense company CSG in Amsterdam in the largest IPO for a pure defense firm. Daniel Kretinsky took over the parent of UK Royal Mail for £3.6 billion in 2024 and became one of the largest shareholders in TotalEnergies. Dividend inflows from foreign-operating companies owned by Czech capital are beginning to improve the country’s current account, which had long been penalized by large outflows of profits to foreign owners.
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