Warren Buffett stands as one of the most influential figures in the history of global investing.

If the financial world had a Hall of Fame, he would have an entire wing dedicated solely to his achievements.

People from every corner of the planet study his life, follow his annual letters, and travel great distances just for the chance to hear him speak.

His story has shaped generations of investors, and his decisions have transformed the landscape of American business.

What began as a failing textile mill eventually became a trillion dollar empire under his leadership.

Berkshire Hathaway today is a vast conglomerate that owns insurance firms, railroads, energy companies, food chains like Dairy Queen, and many other businesses that operate across essential parts of the economy.

For decades, Buffett guided Berkshire with a style of investing that consistently outperformed major benchmarks.

This is particularly striking when compared with widely respected firms like Vanguard, whose philosophy is that the average investor cannot beat the market.

Yet Buffett did just that, year after year, for more than half a century.

When his total returns are compared with the S and P 500, Berkshire Hathaway does not simply win.

It overwhelms the benchmark with a massive long term lead.

For this reason, Buffett became known as the Oracle of Omaha, a man whose insights reshaped modern finance.

So when he announced that he would retire in late 2025 at the age of ninety five, it marked the conclusion of a legendary era.

It also raised a single enormous question for both investors and markets.

What happens to Berkshire Hathaway when its iconic leader steps aside.

Part of Buffett allure comes from the contrast between his extraordinary wealth and his remarkably simple lifestyle.

He lives in Omaha.

He stays in the same modest house he purchased decades ago.

He often eats breakfast at McDonalds, ordering simple meals that cost only a few dollars.

People in the city recognize him not as a billionaire celebrity but as a familiar local figure.

He has drawn an annual salary of one hundred thousand dollars for years, a sum that is minuscule compared to leaders of much smaller companies.

This frugality and consistency are refreshing in an age dominated by extravagant corporate behavior.

To understand why Buffett became such a dominant force, one must look back at his early fascination with money.

As a child, he collected coins, sold soda bottles, and ran small ventures with relentless curiosity.

This fascination eventually led him to Columbia Business School, where he studied under Benjamin Graham.

Graham is widely regarded as the father of value investing.

He taught that investments should be made based on true worth, not on temporary market excitement.

The principle is simple but powerful.

Find companies that are priced below their intrinsic value.

Buy them.

Hold them for years.

Let their real worth emerge with time.

Buffett absorbed these lessons thoroughly.

He embraced the idea that an investor should understand a business deeply before putting money into it.

As he says often, he never buys shares because he expects a quick rise.

He buys because he believes they will be worth far more in ten or twenty years.

This philosophy became the backbone of Berkshire Hathaway.

A classic example of this approach is his investment in American Express.

In the 1960s, Amex suffered a major scandal that pushed its share price downward.

Many investors fled.

Buffett did the opposite.

He kept observing Americans using their Amex cards everywhere and realized the company had enormous long term potential.

He also believed the brand offered something crucial: a moat.

A moat is a form of protection that prevents competitors from easily taking over.

In the case of Amex, the moat came from its premium reputation, affluent customers, and highly developed payment network.

Buffett accumulated a large stake in the company during the 1990s, spending around 1.

3 billion dollars.

Since then, the value of his holdings has increased dramatically, turning that investment into tens of billions.

Buffett often looks for moats in industries where competition is limited by nature.

Energy companies, for example, benefit from regulatory structures that prevent new players from easily entering the market.

This creates stability and long term value.

Berkshire has built strong positions in several such sectors, ensuring that its businesses are not easily displaced by rivals.

However, one of the most important yet understated pillars of Berkshire success is its insurance division.

Insurance companies may not capture headlines, but they give Berkshire something incredibly valuable: float.

Float refers to money collected from policyholders that has not yet been paid out in claims.

This money technically belongs to customers, but insurers get to invest it until claims arise.

Because Berkshire has acquired many insurance companies, it controls a massive pool of float, which Buffett has deployed into new investments for decades.

This steady stream of investable capital allowed Berkshire to grow rapidly without relying heavily on borrowing.

Other major financial players have recently tried to duplicate this model, buying insurance companies to gain their own float.

But Berkshire remains the most famous example of how powerful this strategy can be.

Although Warren Buffett has been the public face of the company, his long time partner Charlie Munger played an equally crucial role behind the scenes.

The two became an iconic duo.

At Berkshire annual meetings, they debated, joked, and offered candid commentary on business and life.

Their chemistry was part of what drew thousands of people to Omaha each year.

Munger passed away in 2023, leaving behind an immense intellectual legacy.

He also reshaped Buffett thinking early in their partnership.

Before Munger influence, Buffett focused heavily on what he called cigar butt investing.

This meant buying weak companies at bargain prices, taking one last puff of value, and disposing of them.

Munger convinced him to shift toward buying high quality companies with lasting competitive advantages.

This new mindset led Buffett to acquire stakes in giants like Coca Cola and Bank of America rather than short term bargains.

Still, even Buffett has made mistakes.

He admitted that his investment in IBM in the early 2010s was misguided because he underestimated the shift toward cloud computing.

Another misstep was the merger of Kraft and Heinz, which struggled in an environment where consumers moved toward healthier foods and inflation pressured costs.

Buffett himself noted that reversing the merger would not fix the problems.

In recent years, Buffett has also faced a new challenge.

He has struggled to find large companies worth investing in at prices he considers reasonable.

As a result, Berkshire accumulated a record cash pile that exceeds 300 billion dollars.

Although rising interest rates have generated income from that cash, deploying such a large amount profitably is increasingly difficult.

Managing hundreds of billions is far more complex than investing a few hundred million.

This is the environment that Greg Abel will inherit when he becomes chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway.

Although the company does not yet have a plush toy made in his image, Abel has long served as a key leader within the conglomerate.

He guided the Berkshire energy division for many years, building a deep understanding of the company structure.

However, stepping into Buffett role will not be simple.

Buffett is not only a masterful investor but also a charismatic communicator.

His annual meetings attract tens of thousands of devoted followers.

His yearly letter is studied like scripture by investors seeking wisdom.

His personality is unmatched in the world of finance.

Abel will take over at a time when value investing faces strong headwinds.

The modern stock market is often driven by high growth technology companies whose valuations appear disconnected from traditional measures of assets.

Although Buffett has invested in technology, including a major stake in Apple, he has also missed some opportunities in the sector.

As leadership transitions, questions arise about whether Berkshire should remain a conglomerate at all.

Many conglomerates have been broken apart in recent years, including once mighty firms like General Electric.

Even after retiring as chief executive, Buffett will not disappear completely.

He will remain chairman of the board and retain considerable influence.

He is also a major shareholder, though he continues to donate much of his wealth to foundations run by his children.

His presence will still shape Berkshire future for years to come.

But Abel will assume many of his duties, including writing the annual shareholder letter.

This change alone marks the end of an era.

For decades, people traveled from distant countries to sit in an arena in Omaha and listen to Warren Buffett talk for hours.

They asked questions about life, investing, history, and philosophy.

They believed that listening to him was worth every mile and every dollar.

His retirement will transform that tradition.

His absence from the Q and A session next year will leave a void that no one in the investment world can truly fill.

The Oracle of Omaha may be stepping back, but his influence will remain woven into the DNA of Berkshire Hathaway and the global financial community.

His wisdom, discipline, and clarity changed the lives of countless investors and reshaped modern capitalism.

The next chapter now begins, guided by new leadership, yet forever touched by the legacy of one extraordinary man.