Warren Buffett said on Saturday that he plans to step down by the end of this year as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
The billionaire investor named Greg Abel, who is vice chairman, as his replacement.
“I think the time has arrived where Greg should become the chief executive of the company at year end,” Buffett said at Berkshire’s annual meeting.
Abel, 62, has been vice chair since 2018.
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Abel joined the former MidAmerican Energy, now known as Berkshire Hathaway Energy, in 1992, eight years before Berkshire took it over.
Buffett, 94, said he would “hang around” the conglomerate after retiring as CEO, according to CNBC.
He said he has no plans to sell his shares in Berkshire Hathaway, which are expected to be donated after his death.
“I would add this, the decision to keep every share is an economic decision because I think the prospects of Berkshire will be better under Greg’s management than mine,” he added.
After making his announcement, the investor received a several-minute standing ovation in honor of his decades of service.
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Buffett has been preparing Abel to be his successor for years, telling CNBC in 2021, “The directors are in agreement that if something were to happen to me tonight, it would be Greg who’d take over tomorrow morning.”
Buffett took over Berkshire Hathaway in 1965 with business partner Charlie Munger, which at the time was a failing textile company. Munger died in 2023.
The conglomerate is now worth more than $1 trillion and Buffett is worth more than $168 billion, although he still lives in the modest Nebraska home he bought for $31,500 in 1958.
His son, Howard, is also expected to succeed him as non-executive chairman of Berkshire.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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