Canadian-born Greg Abel is poised to take over as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B) by the end of 2025, succeeding the legendary Warren Buffett, who announced his retirement this weekend.
“I think the time has arrived where Greg should become the chief executive officer of the company at year end,” Buffett said.
Abel, a 62-year-old Edmonton native and University of Alberta graduate, has been preparing for this role for years. Having served as vice chairman of Berkshire’s non-insurance operations since 2018, he has demonstrated the steady hand and value-investing philosophy that Buffett believes will ensure continuity for the $1.1 trillion conglomerate.
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The announcement comes as Berkshire faces challenging times, with operating earnings down 14% to $9.6 billion in the first quarter, partly due to uncertainty around tariffs and trade policy. However, Berkshire’s shares have gained 33% over the past year and 19% year-to-date, significantly outperforming the S&P 500.
“I would still hang around and could conceivably be useful in a few cases,” Buffett said of his retirement plans, emphasizing that Abel will be more successful than he has been in continuing Berkshire’s growth trajectory.
Abel rose from humble beginnings, starting his career in a working-class family and working odd jobs before graduating from the University of Alberta in 1984. He initially joined PricewaterhouseCoopers before eventually finding his way to CalEnergy, which later became MidAmerican Energy and was acquired by Berkshire.
Despite maintaining a relatively low public profile, Abel has earned praise from Berkshire insiders for his operational excellence. As CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy since 2008, he has overseen all of Berkshire’s non-insurance operations and helped position the company for future growth amid economic uncertainty.
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