Warren Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Hathaway Chairman After 56 Years

Warren Buffett stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway on Friday, closing a 56-year run in the chair of the conglomerate he built into a $1 trillion American institution. The company said the 96-year-old investor becomes chairman emeritus effective immediately and will keep his seat on the board. His son, Howard Buffett, will take over as chairman under a succession plan Berkshire has carried for years, while Greg Abel remains chief executive.

The change was announced in a letter to shareholders published early Friday, a little more than nine months after Abel took over as CEO. Buffett put the decision in the plain terms he has used his whole career. "Father Time always wins," he wrote. "He has, however, been generous with me. He has given me the opportunity to see Berkshire reach a point where I am more confident than ever about what lies ahead."

From a Failing Textile Mill to a Trillion-Dollar Empire

Buffett took control of a struggling New England textile manufacturer in 1965 at age 34, then used the shell of that business to buy insurers, freight railroads, utilities, manufacturers and stocks. He took the chairman's gavel in 1970 and held it until this week.

The record is unmatched in American business. Berkshire compounded shareholder returns at 19.7 percent a year under Buffett, nearly double the S&P 500 over the same stretch. The company earned $44.5 billion in operating profit last year and employs close to 400,000 people across insurance, rail, energy, manufacturing and retail.

Even after handing off the CEO title, Buffett stayed in the middle of the operation. Abel said in March that Buffett was still coming into the Omaha office nearly every day and that the two spoke constantly. He attended the May annual meeting -- the first "Woodstock for Capitalists" not presided over by him -- and delivered brief remarks from his seat.

A Modest Year for Berkshire Stock

Berkshire shares have lagged the broader market in 2026, up about 1 percent while the S&P 500 has climbed more than 11 percent. Rising oil prices and investor appetite for faster-growing corners of the market explain part of the gap, and so does the patience of a company that has spent years sitting on a mountain of cash.

The backdrop has not made it easy on anyone. The Federal Reserve raised rates for the first time since 2023 this month, a quarter-point move that lifts the bar for every long-term investor and signals the inflation fight is in its final stretch.

Buffett still found ways to put money to work. In July he revealed that he was the driving force behind Berkshire's $10 billion private purchase of Alphabet stock in June. Google's parent is now Berkshire's third-largest holding, behind Apple and American Express.

"Greg Runs the Company; Howard Will Guard Its Culture"

Howard Buffett has sat on Berkshire's board since 1993 and has long been designated to step into the chair. Buffett described the division of labor in a way only he would. "Greg runs the company; Howard will guard its culture and values -- both worth more than anything on our balance sheet," he wrote. "Think of Howard as a policy the shareholders own and hope never to claim against."

Abel echoed the theme in the company's announcement. "The culture Warren built and the values he championed will remain at the heart of Berkshire, and Howard will be their guardian," he said. Susan Decker continues as lead independent director.

A Founder Who Stayed on the Job

Buffett has been candid about the limits that come with 96 years. In a Thanksgiving letter to shareholders last year, he admitted that he moves slowly and reads with increasing difficulty, but told them he was still at the office five days a week.

He kept his sense of humor about the milestone. "Recently, I celebrated my 96th birthday with family and friends, including one of my great-grandchildren, who had just turned one," he wrote. "He's moving a bit faster than I am these days."

He broke his leg earlier this year and described himself as recovering. Through it all he has kept taking questions about markets, Washington and the economy, and he has kept showing up.

What to Watch

The spotlight now shifts to Abel, 64, who has run day-to-day operations since January and must prove he can deploy Berkshire's cash at a moment when the market's best ideas look expensive. Shareholders will also watch how Howard handles the chairman's role and whether the family succession plan holds up under scrutiny from investors who bought Berkshire for Buffett's judgment.

Buffett is not disappearing. He keeps the chairman emeritus title, remains a director and, by his own account, still spends his days in Omaha thinking about the company he has run for six decades. "I am more confident than ever about what lies ahead," he wrote.