Greg Abel: The successor to Warren Buffett's position

At Berkshire Hathaway, Greg Abel is regarded as a safe hand

However, he comes after one of the most difficult investors in history, Warren Buffett. Will he be able to prosper?

Ice hockey players from Canada are having a great time. One has recently been elected prime minister of his nation, and another will soon assume leadership of Berkshire Hathaway, one of America's most prestigious financial institutions and Warren Buffett's £116 trillion powerhouse. Both are regarded as safe hands.

According to Bloomberg, Greg Abels' promotion wasn't unexpected. He has been preparing to succeed the 94-year-old "philosopher king of modern investing" since 2021. Even Buffett's pink-cheeked successor was caught off guard by the timing of his announcement, which came at the conclusion of Berkshire's annual meeting on May 3.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) points out that, at least when it comes to stock selection, Abel, 62, is not a miniature Warren. He is more of a manager and strategic business builder. He was an executive at Iowa-based MidAmerican Energy before joining Berkshire 25 years ago. He is a Canadian prairie-raised accountant. Through a string of investments and acquisitions, the aptly named Abel transformed the rebranded Berkshire Hathaway Energy into one of the group's largest companies.

Early on, the Sage of Omaha took notice of him. By 2018, "Buffett had seen enough" to appoint him to the board and place him "in charge of all Berkshires businesses outside of its insurance operations." He has since been unreserved in his praise, as has Charlie Munger, his late friend and investment partner. The latter said in 2023 that Abel was "just sensational at being a business leader, both as thinker and a doer a very remarkable human being," noting that he shares Buffett's psychological traits of being patient, modest, value-driven, and not afraid to place large bets.

Who is Greg Abel?

Abel, who was born in 1962 in Edmonton, Alberta, grew up in a working-class neighborhood and shared a passion for ice hockey with many of his peers, according to CNN Business. As a child, he worked in a variety of jobs, such as forestry labor. In college, he filled fire extinguishers for Levitt Safety, which allowed him to attend the University of Alberta on a small scholarship. Abels started his professional career with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Edmonton in 1984 after earning a degree in accounting. The American journey that brought him to Buffett began with his move to the company's San Francisco office.

Republic Business (India) describes Abel, a longtime resident of Des Moines, Iowa, as "a regular guy who's stayed close to his roots." His net worth was estimated at approximately £484 million in 2021. "He occasionally appears at neighborhood hockey rinks to watch his son play. The game taught him that "you are more successful if you play as a team than as an individual," he once said to an interviewer. Behind that subdued exterior, however, lies "a serious operator." He is "a fiercely intelligent, hyper-efficient guy whose work is his life and who hides his talents behind a wall of humility," according to a 2019 profile written by friends.

The Globe and Mail (Canada) claims that Greg Abel is now the main attraction in the high-pressure world of difficult acts to follow. Following the announcement, Berkshire's stock dropped 5%, which was disappointing. Buffett's performance over the last 60 years has been so exceptional that no one expects Abel to match it "just because the latter's performance has been so off-the-charts brilliant." However, there is no reason to doubt that he will "at least continue to beat the broader market" with Ted Weschler and Todd Combs as his investment lieutenants. To try to "be" Buffett would be a grave mistake, "and he knows that," a Fidelity investor told the Wall Street Journal. Investors want Greg Abel to reach his full potential. Berkshire's trillion-dollar assets are much more difficult to move than they once were, but Buffett has left his successor £348 billion in dry powder. We shall observe his actions.