Berkshire Sets Stage for Post-Buffett Era as CFO Marc Hamburg Announces 2027 Retirement

The conglomerate launches a major leadership transition, naming Charles C. Chang as Hamburg’s successor while Greg Abel prepares to replace Warren Buffett as CEO.

The massive American conglomerate and holding company Berkshire Hathaway announced on Monday that current SVP and CFO Marc Hamburg will retire on June 1 of 2027 after 40 years of service. Charles C. Chang, who became SVP and CFO on June 1st, 2026, will succeed Hamburg, who joined Berkshire in 1987. At Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Chang serves as director, SVP, and CFO. During a period of transition, he will work together with Hamburg.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett is getting prepared to retire as CEO at the end of the year, which coincides with these leadership changes. In May 2025, Berkshire declared that Greg Abel, vice chairman of its non-insurance divisions, would take Buffett's place. After the transition, Buffett will continue to serve as the company's chairman of the board.

Buffett, who worked with Hamburg for a decade, appreciated him in a statement, saying, Marc has been indispensable to Berkshire and to him. Hamburg's experience and integrity are priceless. Many of the company's shareholders will never realize how much he has contributed. His impact has been extraordinary.

Hamburg has led the financial organization of one of the Fortune 500's most prosperous and popular companies while keeping a low profile. Berkshire routinely appears in the top 10.

A quarter of a century ago, when Berkshire entered the energy sector, Abel joined Buffett's network. His term as CEO will soon begin. According to Fortune, after taking over as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy in 2008, the business has expanded dramatically to include a sizable portfolio of utilities, pipelines, natural gas plants, and wind and solar farms. Abel has been the vice chairman of Berkshire's non-insurance divisions since 2018.