Berkshire’s Silent CFO Is Retiring. He Was ‘Indispensable’ to Buffett

Attendees take their seats at the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting in Omaha, Neb., in May. (Dan Brouillette/Bloomberg)

Key Points

• Marc Hamburg, Berkshire Hathaway’s CFO, will retire on June 1, 2027, after 40 years with the company.
• Charles Chang, CFO of Berkshire’s utility unit, will become the new CFO on June 1, 2026.
• Hamburg, known for his low public profile, earned approximately $4 million in each of the past two years.

Berkshire Hathaway Chief Financial Officer Marc Hamburg probably has the lowest public profile of anyone holding that job at a megacap company.

Berkshire said Monday that Hamburg will retire from the company on June 1, 2027, after what will have been 40 years at Berkshire. He joined in 1987. Charles Chang, the CFO of Berkshire’s utility unit, will become Berkshire CFO on June 1, 2026. Hamburg will stay on for a year to smooth the transition.

Hamburg has played a key role in the company’s dealings with regulators including the Securities and Exchange Commission. He also has overseen the preparation of filings such as 10-Qs and 10-Ks, which include voluminous financial data on the company’s dozens of subsidiaries.

Hamburg, who is believed to be around 75 years old, rarely if ever speaks publicly or to the media. He was listed as the contact person on Berkshire’s earnings releases, but he didn’t return occasional phone calls about the results from this reporter. He didn’t reply to a request for comment on Monday’s news.

He also rarely if ever spoke to Wall Street analysts or big investors.

While CFOs and CEOs at other companies typically take center stage on conference calls to discuss financial results, Berkshire doesn’t hold those calls.

Buffett lauded Hamburg’s accomplishments in a news release, alluding to his low profile.

“Marc has been indispensable to Berkshire and to me. His integrity and judgment are priceless. He has done more for this company than many of our shareholders will ever know,” said Buffett. “His impact has been extraordinary.”

Hamburg earned about $4 million in each of the past two years, according to the Berkshire 2025 proxy.

Unlike most big companies, Berkshire has no investor relations department, an area where a CFO often plays an important role. It will be interesting to see whether incoming CEO Greg Abel starts one when he takes the top job at the beginning of 2026.

Buffett has preferred to keep a lean management structure. His policy has been to avoid meetings of Berkshire executives with big investors. Buffett’s attitude is that all investors, large and small, should be on a level playing field and that none should benefit from special access to management.

Buffett also believes that CEOs and CFOs at other big companies spend way too much time on investor relations, leaving less available for running their businesses.

But without Buffett at the helm, Berkshire may need to tell its story to the investment community, and an IR department could help. Buffett will step down as CEO at year-end, to be succeeded by Abel. Buffett will remain chairman.

Write to Andrew Bary at andrew.bary@barrons.com