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This paper provides an overview of the Aztec 13 – the top 13 multinational enterprises in Mexico. Different from research that groups countries and regions, the purpose of the paper is to deliver a nuanced picture of these multinationals in terms of their key characteristics and the strategies they follow when they internationalize.

All data sources that have been identified and reviewed are documents, printed and electronic. The Aztec multilatinas were identified using Forbes Global 2000 (2017). Other data sources such as media texts, company annual reports, reports filed with the Mexican Stock Exchange and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as investor presentations, were collected and analyzed. Data sources were published in English and Spanish. The analytic procedure adopted entailed identifying, selecting, making sense of and synthesizing the data contained in the documents.

Aztec multilatinas have specific characteristics which, to a great extent, influence their internationalization strategies. Characteristics include the geographical location of their headquarters, their origin and history, their ownership structure and ties with families and government. These factors, combined, help to describe in greater nuance the internationalization strategies and activities of the Aztec 13. Such a detailed and focused description is a first necessary step for subsequent potential theorizing.

This paper contributes to the vibrant scholarly conversation on multinational enterprises from less researched regions and countries. Latin America is such a region and Mexico is such a country. Focusing on a single country and its top 13 multinationals allow a comprehensive description and disciplined analysis, with no dangerous generalizations to large regions and even larger settings such as emerging markets multinationals and with no false claims for theorizing.

This paper aims to study the internationalization path of emerging market multinational enterprises (EMNEs) in their international expansion through the global cities (GCs) phenomenon.

The authors used a quantitative approach to identify the most used ownership and entry modes, the preferred economic sectors and the level of interconnectedness of GCs.

The manuscript identified the predominance of the tertiary sector in the selection of GCs as foreign direct investment destinations. Second, the acquisition is the preferred entry mode regardless of the connectivity of the GC and the country of origin of the EMNE. The third is the use of wholly-owned subsidiaries as the preferred ownership mode. Finally, market-seeking is the main driver for the internationalization of Latin American EMNE. Consequentially, some GCs-specific advantages remain untapped by Latin American EMNE.

This manuscript considered each investment into a global city as a single step, although some acquisitions occurred incrementally through several small investments.

The authors developed a road map for the internationalization of Latin American EMNEs through GCs, acquisitions and wholly-owned subsidiaries. Finally, service-oriented EMNEs, such as IT and financial services, target locations with high interconnectedness to maximize the benefits of GCs-specific advantages.

The authors pointed out that market-seeking, not resource-seeking or efficiency-seeking is the primary driver of the internationalization of EMNE into global cities.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a systematic literature review on the subject of multilatinas during 2007-2017, through a review of 55 papers published in 35 journals.

A qualitative technique for conducting a systematic literature review was used. To systematize and make the literature review more accurate, it was divided in four stages: data collection, coding, analysis and interpretation of data. Several tables and figures were developed to provide a better interpretation of the literature.

The phenomenon of multilatinas is still a regional topic. Nine specific gaps in the literature were identified: the role of the state; impact of “home-country reputation”; the role of the host country in the expansion of multilatinas; multilatina selection of markets with geographical closeness and cultural affinity; multilatinas from small economies (mainly Central American countries); studies of multilatinas operating in the service sector; the role of family ownership; studies analysing the multinationality–performance relationship; and the study of collaboration networks between researchers.

The access of academic databases, where more published studies may have been available, and the level of precision in the search for papers that meet the necessary characteristics were included in the review.

This paper contributes to not only the body of knowledge about multilatinas but also, in a wide scope, to the knowledge of multinationals from emerging countries. Furthermore also this paper provide some research directions for academics interested in multinationals.

The general contribution of this paper is in its addressing the topic of multinationals from emerging economies such as Latin America, a less-studied emerging region. Moreover, this work specifically contributes to understanding multilatinas and identifies research gaps and characteristics of the scientific papers on this phenomenon, potentially increasing knowledge about multinationals from emerging countries, and specifically Latin America.

This paper aims to investigate the divestment behavior of emerging market multinationals from Latin America – multilatinas – by examining how their foreign market entry decision impacts the likelihood of subsidiary divestment.

The hypotheses are tested using Cox’s proportional hazard rate model in a longitudinal database of Brazilian multinational companies established in 43 countries.

Results indicate that these subsidiaries can thrive in environments that bear similarities to their home country, being less likely to divest in institutionally weak countries. Contrary to developed country multinationals, these firms benefit from foreign entry decisions that entail handling partnerships abroad; thus, wholly-owned greenfield (WOGF) investments have a higher likelihood of being divested.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to analyze foreign divestment from multilatinas, accounting for how entry mode strategy and host country institutions may impact these firms’ de-internationalization.