Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A. (MSC) is an international shipping line founded by Gianluigi Aponte in Italy in 1970, with headquarters in Switzerland since 1978. The privately held company is owned by the Aponte family. The company operates in all major ports of the world. As of 2023, MSC operates 721 container vessels with an intake capacity of . Overview MSC operates 524 offices in 155 countries with its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland and has over 100,000 employees. MSC's shipping line sails on more than 215 trade routes, calling at over 500 ports. MSC operates vessels with a capacity of up to , including (as of 2019) the world's two largest container ships, MSC Gülsün and MSC Samar. The company is independent and wholly owned by the Aponte family under the leadership of Diego Aponte. Diego was appointed President and CEO by his father and company founder Gianluigi in October 2014. In December 2020, Soren Toft became MSC Chief Executive Officer. Since 1989, MSC has owned the holiday cruise division MSC Cruises. MSC started train operations by taking over the cargo division of CP in 2015, and operates container trains over the Iberian peninsula. Its rail operations have later expanded to Italy and beyond, under the name "Medway". Cocaine-Smuggling In 2022, MSC was reported to be a large transporter of smuggled drugs from South America to Europe. History Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) was founded in Naples in 1970 as a private company by seafaring captain Gianluigi Aponte when he bought his first ship, Patricia, followed by Rafaela, with which Aponte began a shipping line operating between the Mediterranean and Somalia. The line subsequently expanded through the purchase of second-hand cargo ships. By 1977, the company operated services to northern Europe, Africa and the Indian Ocean. In 1978, the headquarters was established in Geneva, Switzerland. The expansion continued through the 1980s; by the end of the decade, MSC operated ships to North America and Australia. In 1988, MSC enter the cruise business by buying the liner Monterey. In 1989, MSC bought Lauro Lines. The new company was named StarLauro Cruises and had 2 ships, Monterey and Achille Lauro. In 1994, MSC ordered its first newly constructed ships, which were delivered beginning in 1996 with MSC Alexa. They were built by Italian shipbuilder, Fincantieri. In 1995, StarLauro Cruises was renamed MSC Cruises. In October 2014, Diego Aponte (son of MSC founder Gianluigi Aponte)