Charlie Munger, who helped Warren Buffett build Berkshire Hathaway, dies at 99
- Munger was known for steering Buffett away from buying ‘cigar butts’ – mediocre firms at very cheap prices – and instead favouring quality over quantity
- The long-time second-in-command at Berkshire died peacefully at a hospital in California, just over a month before what would have been his 100th birthday
Charlie Munger, who quit a law career to become Warren Buffett’s trusted confidant and long-time second-in-command at Berkshire Hathaway, died on Tuesday morning. He was 99.
Berkshire said Munger died peacefully at a hospital in California, where he lived. No cause was given. Munger would have turned 100 on January 1.
“Berkshire Hathaway could not have been built to its present status without Charlie’s inspiration, wisdom and participation,” Buffett, Berkshire’s 93-year-old chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.
Munger had been a Berkshire vice-chairman since 1978, working closely with Buffett on allocating the Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate’s capital, and being quick to tell him when he was making a mistake.
“It’s a shock,” said Thomas Russo, a partner at Gardner Russo & Quinn in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and long-time Berkshire shareholder. “It will leave a big void for investors who have modelled their thoughts, words and activities around Munger and his insights.”
