He’s looking like a genius.
Warren Buffett’s decision to sell stocks and accumulate a cash reserve of around $300 billion last year appears to have been a wise one, as he is the only one of the world’s top 10 wealthiest individuals whose net worth has risen in 2025, despite a market downturn caused by President Trump’s tariffs.
The market suffered a historic two-day crash last week, wiping out over half a trillion dollars from the combined wealth of the top 500 richest individuals, marking the largest loss ever recorded on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Despite this, Buffett’s wealth grew by $11.5 billion since January 1, isolating him and other Berkshire Hathaway shareholders from the volatility that followed the tariff announcement.
From Thursday to Monday, major indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell by 10.7% and 11.3%, respectively, leading to massive losses among the ultra-wealthy. More than $500 billion was lost in total, with $329 billion of that occurring in a single day—the largest one-day loss since the COVID-19 market crash of 2020. Nearly 90% of billionaires saw their fortunes shrink, with an average decline of 3.5%.
Elon Musk suffered the largest drop, with Tesla’s stock losing over 10%, causing a $31 billion drop in Musk’s net worth. He lost an additional $4.4 billion on Monday, totaling a $135 billion loss across three days. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also saw a significant decline, losing $27 billion as Meta’s stock fell nearly 14%. However, his fortune recovered slightly on Monday after the stock gained 2.28%.
In contrast to the frenzy in the stock market, Buffett’s approach in 2024 was one of caution. He reduced Berkshire Hathaway’s stock purchases, sold off holdings, and amassed a cash reserve totaling $334 billion before liabilities—more than the market value of Coca-Cola. This strategy reflected his skepticism about the high valuations in the market. Over the course of 2024, Berkshire Hathaway sold $143 billion in stocks, with just $9 billion in new purchases, resulting in a net stock sale of $134 billion. This shift in strategy was accompanied by a large tax bill, with Berkshire paying a record $26.8 billion in corporate income taxes, the largest amount ever paid by any U.S. company.
