Warren Buffett to ‘go quiet,’ increase philanthropy after stepping down as Berkshire CEO

Billionaire investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett has announced plans to “go quiet” after stepping down as chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of this year, marking the close of an extraordinary six-decade tenure that made him one of the world’s most influential business figures.

In his final letter to shareholders, the 94-year-old revealed that he intends to accelerate his philanthropic efforts by donating his remaining $149 billion stake in Berkshire Hathaway to his family’s charitable foundations. Buffett, who remains one of the five richest people globally with a net worth of $152.1 billion, confirmed that Gregory Abel, 63, will take over as CEO in January 2026, while he continues as chairman of the board.

“As the British would say, I’m ‘going quiet’… sort of,” Buffett wrote, noting that his successor already enjoys the full confidence of Berkshire’s board and his own family. “I would like to keep a significant amount of Class A shares until shareholders develop the comfort with Greg that Charlie and I long enjoyed,” he added, referring to his late business partner, Charlie Munger.

In one of the letter’s most personal revelations, Buffett said he had converted 1,800 Class A shares—worth roughly $1.35 billion—into 2.7 million Class B shares, which he donated to four family foundations: The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, The Sherwood Foundation, The Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation.

“To improve the probability that they will dispose of what will essentially be my entire estate before alternate trustees replace them, I need to step up the pace of lifetime gifts,” Buffett explained, referring to his children’s foundations.

He emphasised that the decision to hasten his giving does not signal any loss of faith in Berkshire’s prospects. “The acceleration of my lifetime gifts to my children’s foundations in no way reflects any change in my views about Berkshire’s future,” he said.

Buffett’s Thanksgiving letter will replace his famed annual shareholder letter, which has been a must-read for global investors since 1965. The new tradition, he said, will allow him to stay connected to Berkshire’s community while giving Abel full control over shareholder communications.

Offering a rare glimpse into his personal life, Buffett wrote, “To my surprise, I generally feel good. Though I move slowly and read with increasing difficulty, I am at the office five days a week where I work with wonderful people. I was late in becoming old … but once it appears, it is not to be denied.”

Since taking control of Berkshire Hathaway in 1965, Buffett has transformed a struggling textile manufacturer into a trillion-dollar conglomerate with interests spanning insurance, utilities, railroads, energy, and consumer brands.

“Berkshire has less chance of a devastating disaster than any business I know,” he said, highlighting the company’s record $381.6 billion in cash reserves at the end of September. Operating profit surged 34% in the third quarter, underscoring its strong fundamentals even as the firm has been trimming its equity exposure amid what Buffett sees as an overheated market.

He acknowledged, however, that Berkshire’s vast scale has become both an advantage and a constraint. “A decade or two from now, there will be many companies that have done better than Berkshire; our size takes its toll,” he wrote. 

Despite that, Buffett expressed unwavering faith in the company’s resilience. “Our stock price will move capriciously, occasionally falling 50% or so as has happened three times in 60 years under present management. Don’t despair; America will come back and so will Berkshire shares.”

The “Oracle of Omaha,” as he is fondly known, leaves behind not only a towering investment legacy but also a roadmap for responsible wealth distribution — one that reaffirms his belief that “the measure of success is not what you keep, but what you give away.”

With IANS inputs