STUTTGART (dpa-AFX) – Despite the crisis in the global economy, the testing group Dekra continued to do stable business in 2025. Sales increased by 3.4 percent to 4.4 billion euros, as CFO Wolfgang Linsenmaier told the German Press Agency in Stuttgart. The adjusted operating result increased by 3.3 percent to around 275 million euros.
According to the statement, business was impacted by, among other things, challenging geoeconomic conditions and, in some cases, declining developments, especially in the European automotive industry. Linsenmaier said Dekra had made gains in almost all regions. Sales in Asia remained stable.
The bottom line was that profit fell by 74 percent to 37.6 million euros. The reason given was special effects and special depreciation. The company has set itself the goal of increasing sales to around 6 billion euros by 2030. This should be supported by internal growth in the core markets as well as targeted investments in future areas, said the CFO. Sales growth in the mid-single-digit percentage range is expected this year.
Further expansion of vehicle testing
Many drivers know Dekra primarily from its general inspection. Linsenmaier said around 34 million vehicles were tested worldwide in 2025. There were further investments in testing. This is the case in Saudi Arabia but also in Europe. The expansion will continue. The CFO cited the expansion of business in Denmark and Finland as examples. This has strengthened global market leadership in the vehicle testing market.
Dekra was founded a little more than 100 years ago – with the aim of ensuring road safety through vehicle inspections. Today the company sees itself as the world’s largest expert organization in the areas of testing, inspection and certification. In addition to classic tasks, future fields such as testing and certification of functional safety, cybersecurity and AI in one package are becoming more important.
The area called “Digital Trust” is intended to help customers bring product innovations to market more quickly and minimize security risks, Linsenmaier said. Activities in the area of sustainability should also be expanded.
In Germany, Dekra created 600 new jobs last year. A total of 23,953 men and women work there. There were 48,155 people worldwide./ols/DP/stw
