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United States
$62.0 bil
- America's most beloved investor is now the world's richest man.
- Soared past friend and bridge partner Bill Gates as shares of Berkshire Hathaway climbed 25% since the middle of last July.
- Son of Nebraska politician delivered newspapers as a boy.
- Filed first tax return at age 13, claiming $35 deduction for bicycle.
- Studied under value investing guru Benjamin Graham at Columbia.
- Took over textile firm Berkshire Hathaway in 1965.
- Today holding company invested in insurance (GEICO, General Re), jewelry (Borsheim's), utilities (MidAmerican Energy Holdings), food (Dairy Queen, See's Candies).
- Also has noncontrolling stakes in Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo.
- Insurance operations flourished in 2007. "That party is over. It's a certainty that insurance-industry profit margins, including ours, will fall significantly in 2008."
- The Oracle of Omaha issued a challenge to members of The Forbes 400 in October; said he would donate $1 million to charity if the collective group of richest Americans would admit they pay less taxes, as a percentage of income, than their secretaries.
- Had long promised to give away his fortune posthumously.
- Irrevocably earmarked the majority of his Berkshire shares to charity in 2006, mostly to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Gift was valued at $31 billion on day of announcement; donation will far exceed that sum so long as Berkshire shares continue to rise.
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