Among the world's richest companies by market cap, Berkshire Hathaway is Warren Buffett's investment conglomerate.
Berkshire Hathaway is a diversified holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Warren Buffett became its chairman and chief executive after buying shares in the struggling textile business during the 1960s. He later shifted the company toward insurance, investments, and ownership of operating businesses.
Berkshire's major insurance businesses include GEICO and General Re. It has also owned or invested in companies across railroads, utilities, manufacturing, consumer products, and services. The company is known for retaining earnings and allocating capital among subsidiaries, acquisitions, and publicly traded investments.
Berkshire's Class A shares are famous for their exceptionally high per-share price, while Class B shares provide a lower-priced alternative with different voting rights. That share price is not itself the company's market capitalization; market cap combines share prices with the number of shares outstanding.