Cover Warren Buffett at the 2015 SelectUSA Investment Summit (Photo: Wikimedia Commons, USA International Trade Administration)
Warren Buffett at the 2015 SelectUSA Investment Summit (Photo: Wikimedia Commons, USA International Trade Administration)
1 / 1
Warren Buffett is stepping down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway after six decades. Here’s a look at the legendary career of the Oracle of Omaha
Warren Buffett is stepping aside. The 94-year-old investor and billionaire has announced that he will step down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of the year, ending one of the most iconic and influential careers in global business. Buffett, currently the sixth richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of over US$168 billion, led the multinational conglomerate for more than six decades, transforming it into a trillion-dollar powerhouse.
While he will remain as chairman of the board for now, the company has confirmed that Greg Abel—vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and Buffett’s named successor—will take over as chief executive. Abel is expected to assume full control in 2026, though the succession process has already been in motion for several years.
Also read: Billionaire hobbies: What do the world's richest men do outside of work?
From buying his first stock at age 11 to shaping the investment strategy of an empire, here’s a look back at the remarkable life and career of the legendary Oracle of Omaha.
Buffet begins: A childhood investor with big ambitions
Born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1930, Warren Buffett developed a passion for business early, thanks in part to his father, Howard Buffett, who worked as a stockbroker and later served in Congress. By the time Warren was 11 years old, he purchased his first stock. “The year was 1942, I was 11, and I went all in, investing US$114.75 I had begun accumulating at age 6. What I bought was three shares of Cities Service preferred stock,” Buffett wrote in his 2025 annual stakeholders’ report. “I had become a capitalist, and it felt good.”
At 14, he used his earnings from delivering newspapers and selling soft drinks to buy a 40-acre farm in Nebraska for US$1,200. He later launched a small business installing used pinball machines in local barbershops, which he eventually sold for the same amount.
These early ventures showed Buffett’s entrepreneurial instincts and set the foundation for his lifelong investment philosophy: buy smart, think long-term, and reinvest profits.
The birth of Buffett’s financial philosophy
Above Benjamin Graham was an economist, investor and professor who is widely considered as the father of value investing. Warren Buffett considers him as one of his mentors. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
Benjamin Graham was an economist, investor and professor who is widely considered as the father of value investing. Warren Buffett considers him as one of his mentors. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
1 / 1
Buffett began his college education at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1947, later transferring to the University of Nebraska to complete his degree in business administration. In 1951, he earned his master’s in economics at Columbia Business School, where he studied under Benjamin Graham, the economist widely regarded as the father of value investing.
Buffett would later call Graham his greatest mentor. After graduation, he worked at Graham’s investment partnership, where he also met future investing legend Walter Schloss and GEICO executive Lorimer Davidson—two figures who would influence Buffett’s eventual acquisition of the insurance company.
By the time Warren Buffett left Graham’s firm at age 25, he had already saved around US$9,800—equivalent to over US$130,000 today.
The rise of Berkshire Hathaway
In 1956, Warren Buffett launched his own investment firm, Buffett Associates, Ltd., and began forming a series of profitable partnerships. By 1962, he had become a millionaire and started buying shares in a struggling textile company called Berkshire Hathaway. By 1970, Buffett had taken control of the company and pivoted it into a holding company that would become one of the largest and most admired conglomerates in the world.
Buffett used Berkshire’s profits to buy insurance companies like GEICO and National Indemnity, and eventually expanded the portfolio to include railroads, utilities, and consumer brands. His approach—buying undervalued companies with strong fundamentals and holding them for decades—cemented his reputation as a visionary investor.
Best bets: The companies that made Buffett a legend
Above President Barack Obama meets with Warren Buffett, the Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway in the Oval Office, July 18, 2011. (Photo: Pete Souza, Official White House photo)
President Barack Obama meets with Warren Buffett, the Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway in the Oval Office, July 18, 2011. (Photo: Pete Souza, Official White House photo)
1 / 1
Buffett’s investments became the stuff of legend. He bought stock in The Walt Disney Company in 1964 for US$4 million and sold it a few years later for US$6 million—a tidy 50 per cent return. That same year, he took a position in American Express, which would become one of Berkshire’s most valuable long-term holdings.
Other high-profile investments included Coca-Cola, Apple, Bank of America, Visa, Mastercard, T-Mobile, BYD and Mitsubishi Corporation. His rare but memorable stake in Amazon was seen as a departure from his usual value-oriented strategy, but it paid off.
Today, Berkshire Hathaway owns more than 70 companies outright and holds substantial equity positions in dozens more. Its current market capitalisation exceeds US$1.1 trillion. Among the brands Berkshire fully owns are Dairy Queen, See’s Candies, Fruit of the Loom, Duracell and BNSF Railway.
The Giving Pledge
Above Warren Buffett and Bill Gates at the Sunday games at Borsheims during the 2018 Berkshire Hathaway shareholders weekend (Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Borsheims Jewelry)
Warren Buffett and Bill Gates at the Sunday games at Borsheims during the 2018 Berkshire Hathaway shareholders weekend (Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Borsheims Jewelry)
1 / 1
Despite being named the world’s richest person in 2008 (temporarily overtaking Bill Gates), Buffett is known for his modest lifestyle. He still lives in the five-bedroom Omaha home he purchased in 1958.
And yet Buffett is also one of the world’s most prominent philanthropists. In 2010, Buffett co-founded The Giving Pledge with Bill and Melinda Gates—a commitment by billionaires to give away the majority of their wealth. By 2022, Buffett had already donated over US$36 billion, with plans to give away 99 per cent of his fortune either during his lifetime or upon his death.
The next chapter: Greg Abel steps in
As Buffett prepares to step down, the spotlight shifts to his successor: Greg Abel, the 62-year-old vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy. Known for his no-nonsense leadership style, Abel has been instrumental in managing the non-insurance side of Berkshire’s vast operations and has long been groomed for the top role.
Buffett himself has praised Abel repeatedly over the years, and the board’s succession plan reflects a commitment to continuity—ensuring that the company’s culture and principles remain intact as it enters a new era.
Topics
