He isn’t quite as rich as the world’s richest person. Microsoft founder Bill Gates holds that title. However, the Warren Buffett net worth isn’t far off.
The business mogul has built up his fortune over the last 75 years, making investments through his Berkshire Hathaway holding company. He doesn’t always follow the crowd, but he has an eye for a good deal that has transformed the company into one of the most successful in the world.
Of course, he isn’t perfect. The wise investor regrets his reluctance to buy stock in internet companies such as Google and Amazon. He had his reasons – he had watched the dot-com bubble burst a decade earlier, which cost some investors billions, and was keen to avoid a similar fate.
Had he invested in Google and Amazon, which are the second and fourth biggest companies by market cap respectively, he would likely sit above Bill Gates at the top of the list, but for now he must settle for the ‘world’s second richest person’ title.
From $228 to more than $75 billion
The savvy businessman purchased for his first stock at the age of 11. He paid $38 dollars per share for six shares in Cities Service (Citgo) using money that he had saved up from his paper round. He eventually sold the shares for $40, providing a $12 return on his first investment.
Thanks to a successful pinball business, Buffett had grown his worth to $6,000 by the time he turned 15.
After graduating college, Buffett wanted to go to work on Wall Street. However, he was talked out of it by his father. After a period of jumping from job to job, he eventually found work with his former lecturer Ben Graham, who is a major figure in the investment world. Within five years, Buffett’s worth had grown to over $100,000.
After six years, Buffett ditched the company to become his own boss. He used $100,000 invested by his friends and family to start an investment business. Within a decade, the company had grown its wealth to $7.2 million, $1 million of which was personally owned by the mogul.
Buffett used an unusual strategy. He would look at what other investors were doing and do the complete opposite.
For example, when American Express saw its share price fall in 1964 due to a fraud scandal, investors began to dispose of their stock. Buffett, on the other hand, was buying up as much of it as he could. Within a year, the stock was worth double what he had paid.
The Berkshire Hathaway owner hit the billion dollar mark at some point during the 1980s. However, he is now worth a considerably larger amount.
What is the Warren Buffett net worth?
He rarely makes a bad decision and the Warren Buffett net worth proves it. The more he invests, the faster his worth rises. For example, he added a staggering sum of $12 billion to his personal wealth in 2016 alone.
As a result, the Warren Buffett net worth currently stands at $76.6 billion.
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