Abstract:
On September 18, Warren Buffett, the former chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, sent a letter to Berkshire shareholders stating that the company had completed a further leadership transition: he himself became honorary chairman and continued to serve as a director, Howard Buffett took over as chairman, and CEO Greg Abel continued to be responsible for the company's operations.
Buffett said that Abel has actually been responsible for the company's important decisions for some time, and his performance has exceeded his expectations; Howard will be mainly responsible for guarding Berkshire's corporate culture and values.
Buffett said that after leading Berkshire for more than 60 years, he believes now is the right time to complete the handover and said he is more confident than ever in the future of the company.
The following is the full text translation of the article:
To all shareholders:
Berkshire has an unusual group of shareholders.
From the beginning, Charlie and I looked for owners who thought in terms of ten years, not quarters. Fortunately, we found many such people.
Not long ago, I celebrated my 96th birthday with my family and friends. Among those who came was one of my great-grandsons, who was just one year old. Now, he walks much faster than me.
I have been with Berkshire since 1965. More than sixty years later, I still feel that I have the best job in the world. At my age, there are probably not many people who can still say that. And I have never been more at ease with what will happen next.
One of the important reasons is Greg.
My expectations for him could not have been higher from the beginning, and he has exceeded even those expectations. He has truly taken over the full responsibilities of CEO. In fact, for some time now, he had been making the really important decisions in the company, and I never had a moment's hesitation about any of his decisions.
So now is the time to complete this transition.
I will transition to the role of honorary chairman and continue to serve as a director. My son Howard will succeed me as Chairman.
Howard has been a director of Berkshire Hathaway for 33 years. This “apprenticeship period” was longer than what I experienced before I took over the company at the age of 34.
Greg runs the company; Howard protects the company's culture and values. And these two things are more precious than any asset on our balance sheet.
You can think of Howard as an insurance policy that is jointly held by shareholders but hopes that there will never be a claim.
Howard cares deeply about Berkshire, as do all of our directors. There has never been, and there will be no company in the future, that puts shareholders more at heart than Berkshire.
It is the honor of my life to serve as your chairman. I have never taken for granted the trust you have given me.
Father Time will win in the end.
However, he has been generous enough to me. Because of this, I have had the opportunity to see Berkshire get to where it is today, and it also makes me more confident than ever about its future at this moment.
The company is in very reliable hands.
And I also look forward to continuing to accompany you as a shareholder of Berkshire on this journey.
September 18, 2026
Warren E. Buffett
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