Introduction: A Capitalist Complicity Few Dare to Confront
World War II is often framed as a heroic battle between democracy and fascism, between the Allies and the Axis. Yet buried beneath this moral narrative lies a darker, more uncomfortable truth—several major American corporations maintained lucrative relationships with Nazi Germany, providing technology, fuel, vehicles, and even bureaucratic tools used to commit atrocities. While U.S. soldiers were dying on European soil, some U.S. companies were making profits from Hitler’s regime.
This article explores the disturbing history of how prominent firms like IBM, Ford, Coca-Cola, and Standard Oil chose profit over humanity, aiding a genocidal regime while millions were exterminated. These relationships, mostly obscured from mainstream historical narratives, raise hard questions about the ethics of capitalism and the responsibilities of corporations in times of moral crisis.
IBM and the Holocaust: Computing Systematic Death
Few corporations are as directly linked to the infrastructure of the Holocaust as International Business Machines (IBM). Under the leadership of CEO Thomas J. Watson, IBM’s German subsidiary—Dehomag—provided the punch-card machines and tabulating systems that allowed Nazi officials to systematically identify, classify, and ultimately exterminate Jews, Roma, and other persecuted groups.
These early proto-computers were used for everything from census data sorting to train logistics, even helping manage the deportation schedules to concentration camps like Auschwitz. While IBM claims it lost control of its German division after the war began, investigative research by authors like Edwin Black (“IBM and the Holocaust”) revealed that IBM continued to maintain technical support and oversight, even as the genocide was unfolding. IBM’s involvement reveals a chilling truth: bureaucratic efficiency enabled industrial-scale murder. And behind it all, a U.S.-based company silently counted its profits.
Ford Motor Company: Manufacturing for the Reich
The connection between Ford Motor Company and Nazi Germany runs deep and ideologically unsettling. Henry Ford, an avowed anti-Semite, was admired by Adolf Hitler—so much so that Ford was mentioned in Hitler’s own manifesto, Mein Kampf. Ford even received the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the highest Nazi honor available to foreigners.
More than symbolic ties, Ford’s German subsidiary played a crucial role in manufacturing military vehicles and equipment for the Wehrmacht, particularly during the early years of the war. Allegations emerged that forced labor—including prisoners of war and concentration camp inmates—was used in Ford’s factories under Nazi control.
Though Ford executives later claimed ignorance, documents suggest that corporate headquarters in Dearborn remained aware of profits generated by their German operations. In the brutal calculus of war, Ford made a choice—to preserve assets and relationships with a fascist regime, even at the cost of complicity in human suffering.
Standard Oil and IG Farben: Fueling the Nazi War Machine
If IBM provided the brains and Ford the wheels, Standard Oil delivered the bloodline—fuel. Through complex partnerships, notably with Germany’s IG Farben (the chemical giant responsible for producing Zyklon B, the gas used in Auschwitz), Standard Oil provided crucial technology and materials to Nazi Germany.
Among the most damning collaborations was the synthetic rubber and fuel project called Buna, which was developed jointly by Standard Oil and IG Farben. These resources were vital for the Nazi war machine, especially as Allied blockades tightened access to natural oil.
Even as the U.S. entered the war, Standard Oil was accused of violating wartime restrictions, secretly funneling strategic resources to Germany via neutral countries. Despite some executives being investigated, the corporation faced little long-term accountability. Standard Oil’s actions spotlight how corporate interests can transcend national loyalty when profits are at stake—and how those decisions can have devastating consequences.
Coca-Cola: Quenching the Thirst of Nazi Fascism
During the 1930s and early 1940s, Coca-Cola became deeply embedded in Nazi Germany, navigating political shifts with remarkable agility. Its German bottling plants continued operating even after the war began, maintaining production for the Nazi populace and military.
But what’s perhaps most revealing is Coca-Cola’s invention of Fanta, created by its German branch during the war when ingredients to make Coke became unavailable due to trade restrictions. With fruit waste and whey, Coca-Cola’s team invented a new product specifically to cater to the German market under Hitler.
While Coca-Cola would later rebrand its wartime history, the creation of Fanta is a testament to corporate adaptability—even if it meant innovating under a fascist regime. It wasn’t until decades later that the company confronted this chapter of its past.
Corporate Profits and the Machinery of Genocide
These corporations were not fringe players. They were household names, pillars of American industry, and symbols of capitalist success. Their involvement in Nazi Germany was not only about logistics or opportunism—it was about making deliberate choices to protect business interests, even if that meant abetting one of history’s greatest crimes.
From supplying materials for gas chambers to facilitating forced labor, the contributions of U.S. corporations to the Nazi regime went well beyond passive trade. They helped build, run, and sustain the very system that enabled the Holocaust. In some cases, like IBM’s, their tools were instrumental to the administration of genocide. In others, like Ford and Standard Oil, their products and infrastructure kept the Nazi war machine running longer and more efficiently.
Post-War Amnesia: The Whitewashing of Corporate Guilt
Despite their wartime collaborations, few of these companies faced lasting consequences. Many settled quietly with the U.S. government or Holocaust survivor groups, without admitting guilt. In the post-war period, the narrative shifted to rebuilding and economic growth—justice for corporate collaboration was largely forgotten.
This lack of accountability speaks volumes about the era’s priorities. The onset of the Cold War and the desire to rebuild Germany as a buffer against Soviet influence meant sweeping inconvenient truths under the rug. Profitable corporations were not only protected—they were sometimes celebrated for their post-war contributions.
Even today, these companies continue to operate as global giants, with sanitized histories that often omit their darkest chapters. Only recently have independent researchers and historians begun to piece together the extent of their involvement.
Conclusion: The Profits That Enabled a Holocaust
The stories of IBM, Ford, Coca-Cola, and Standard Oil serve as cautionary tales. They reveal how capitalism, unchecked by ethics, can become complicit in atrocities. While the world rallied to defeat fascism militarily, segments of corporate America quietly supported it—behind the curtain of commerce and beneath the radar of public accountability.
It’s tempting to believe that such actions belong to a distant past. But the truth is, the moral failures of these corporations during the Holocaust highlight enduring questions about corporate responsibility, ethical capitalism, and the price of silence in the face of evil. To truly honor the victims of Nazi brutality, we must also confront the enablers—not just the soldiers and dictators, but also the executives and shareholders who put profits over lives.
