FedEx

FDX · NYSE American · Courier, Transportation · Founded 1971

FedEx Corporation is an American multinational transportation, e-commerce, and business-services company headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1971 by Frederick W. Smith as Federal Express Corporation, it began operations in 1973 as an express delivery company centered on an air-and-ground network based at Memphis International Airport. FedEx now provides parcel delivery, express transportation, freight forwarding, logistics, customs brokerage, supply-chain services, and retail printing and shipping services worldwide. In fiscal 2026, the company reported revenue of $94.7 billion and employed about 452,000 people. Federal Express expanded rapidly during its first decades, entering European and Asian markets in the 1980s and acquiring cargo airline Flying Tiger Line in 1988. The company adopted the abbreviated name FedEx for marketing purposes in 1994. In 1997 it reorganized as the holding company FDX Corporation and acquired Caliber System, adding ground parcel delivery, freight, logistics, and other services to its express-delivery business. FDX was renamed FedEx Corporation in 2000. Later acquisitions included Kinko's, which became FedEx Office, and European delivery company TNT Express. In the 2020s FedEx began another major restructuring, combining its air and ground delivery operations and spinning off FedEx Freight as a separate publicly traded company in June 2026. The company's principal businesses include FedEx Express, its original time-definite air-delivery operation; ground parcel delivery; FedEx Logistics, which provides freight forwarding, customs brokerage and supply-chain services; and FedEx Office, its retail printing and shipping business. FedEx operates a large global network of aircraft and ground vehicles. Its purple-and-orange wordmark, introduced in 1994, is known for the arrow formed by the negative space between the letters E and x. FedEx has also faced disputes over its labor practices and business operations. These have included litigation and regulatory scrutiny over the classification of FedEx Ground drivers as independent contractors, controversy over unionization, and criticism of employee protections during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2014 the company was indicted on allegations that it had knowingly shipped controlled substances for illegal online pharmacies; the Department of Justice dropped the charges in 2016. FedEx was also investigated by Chinese authorities in 2019 after packages belonging to Huawei were diverted to the United States. The company has pledged to make its operations carbon-neutral by 2040, including through fleet electrification and other emissions-reduction measures.