Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Greece in 2025 reached a record level of 12.8 billion euros, according to data released by the OECD. USD 12.8 billion, by far the highest amount for the last 20 years.

FDI last year was 69% higher than in 2024 and more than 50% higher than in 2022, when the previous record (8.4 billion dollars).

The jump in foreign investment, which has an important role to play in the economy’s growth, came at a time when geopolitical turmoil and the US trade war had sharply increased uncertainty.

The European Union saw a 6% decline in FDI in 2025, while globally it increased by 15% to 1.66 trillion euros. dollars, but essentially the increase was 6%, excluding large fluctuations seen in some European economies.

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An analysis of OECD data shows that FDI was mainly carried out by equity acquisition. Investments of this type amounted to $10.5 billion or about 82% of all inflows, while reinvestment of earnings amounted to $2 billion or 15.5% and investments in the form of borrowing from the parent company amounted to just $321 million or 2.5%.

In terms of the sectors where FDI is directed, services dominate, followed by manufacturing at a lower rate, while inflows to the agricultural sector are minimal.

In the three-year period 2022-2024, for which relevant data are available, investment in the services sector accounted for 59% to 85% of the total, while in the manufacturing sector it ranged from 7% to 19%. The lion’s share in the services sector was held by the financial and insurance activities sector, with inflows of over $2.5 billion in 2022 and 2024, and the real estate activities sector, with inflows ranging from $973 million in 2022 to $2.1 billion in 2024. At the same time, there were high inflows, from $855 million to $1 billion, for private real estate activities over this period. The IT-communications sector also attracted significant capital, from $320 million to $500 million over the three-year period. Investments in the services sector were made through a 58% equity purchase for 2024 and 2023.

In manufacturing, equity investments were very small, and the sectors in which they were made in 2024 were mainly food (206 million) and metals and machinery (also 206 million).

Increased inflows of foreign investment in recent years have resulted in a significant increase in the stock of foreign investment, although it still remains relatively low by international standards. The stock of FDI was double in 2024 compared to 2018 and triple compared to 2016. In particular, in 2024 it was close to $72 billion or 28% of GDP, compared to $35.7 billion in 2018 and $24.6 billion in 2016. Among the 38 OECD and G20 countries, Luxembourg ranked first in terms of FDI stock with 300% of GDP, followed by the Netherlands and Ireland with rates of over 200%.

Regarding the rate of return on FDI in Greece, in 2023 it was higher than 6%, about the same as in the UK, Germany and France.