Warren Buffett steps down as Berkshire Hathaway chairman, succeeded by his son

Buffett will remain on the company's board but will be succeeded as chairman by his son, Howard Buffett, consistent with the company's long-standing succession plan. Howard Buffett has served as a Berkshire director since 1993.

"Serving as your chairman has been the privilege of a lifetime, and I have never taken your trust for granted," Warren Buffett wrote in a letter to shareholders posted Friday on the company's website.

He noted that he had recently celebrated his 96th birthday surrounded by family and friends. "Father Time always wins. He has, however, been generous with me." 

The step is the latest in the company's long and deliberate leadership transition. Buffett officially stepped down as chief executive on Jan. 1, turning the job over to Greg Abel. 

Abel took the leading role in May at Berkshire's annual meeting in Omaha, fielding questions while the legendary investor was seated on the floor of the CHI Health Center with other directors. Buffett gave only brief remarks, including saying the decision to appoint Abel had been "100% successful."

Abel first came to Berkshire 25 years ago through its acquisition of MidAmerican Energy, where he was an executive. He has managed Berkshire's non-insurance companies since 2018. 

In a press release posted Friday, Abel said on behalf of Berkshire's board: "Warren’s impact on Berkshire and its owners is without parallel in the history of American business. The culture Warren built and the values he championed will remain at the heart of Berkshire, and Howard will be their guardian." 

In his letter, Buffett voiced unreserved confidence in both Abel and in Howard Buffett to continue to lead the company he grew from a struggling New England textile mill to the sprawling enterprise it is today. Over many of those years, he was joined by his longtime business partner, the late Charlie Munger. 

Buffett noted that he had served Berkshire since 1965. "Sixty-plus years in, I still have the best job in the world," he wrote. "That is not something many people my age can say, and I have never felt better about what comes next.

"Part of the reason is Greg. My expectations for him were sky high from the start, and he has exceeded them. He has taken hold of the chief executive officer job in every respect. He has been making the decisions that matter for some time now, and I have not had to think twice about any of them. So the timing is right to complete the transition."

Buffett added that Howard Buffett has served as a director for 33 years. "That is a longer apprenticeship than I served before taking the reins at the age of 34," he said. 

While Abel runs the company, Buffett wrote, "Howard will guard its culture and values — both worth more than anything on our balance sheet. Think of Howard as a policy the shareholders own and hope never to claim against."

Howard Buffett brings his own share of experience to the position. He has served since 1999 as chairman and chief executive officer of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, a charitable foundation focused on global food security and conflict mitigation.

He served as a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador Against Hunger for the World Food Program for nearly a decade. He has been a director of numerous public and private company boards, including Agro Tech, Archer Daniels Midland, ConAgra Foods, The Coca-Cola Company, Coca-Cola Enterprises, FirsTier Financial and Lindsay Corporation, including as chairman of the board.