The talks reportedly focused on the possible investment of the “Oracle of Omaha” in the banking sector
Senior US officials have held talks with billionaire investor Warren Buffet, discussing the ongoing banking crisis and possible ways out of it, Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing sources in President Joe Biden’s administration. .
known as the “Oracle of Omaha” Buffett is one of the most successful investors in the world with a fortune of around $101.6 billion and heads the conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, which owns dozens of successful businesses including insurer Geico, the battery manufacturer Duracell and the Dairy Queen restaurant chain.
According to the report, there have been several conversations between the billionaire and officials in Washington over the past week, with discussions focusing on Buffet’s possible investments in the banking sector and his advice regarding the sector’s volatile situation. Further details of the discussions have not been disclosed and no official confirmation of these discussions has been given.
Officials began seeking Buffet’s financial acumen after three regional U.S. lenders collapsed earlier this month — Silvergate, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature — following massive deposit outflows. The bank runs were triggered by investor concerns about the financial health of institutions following recent interest rate hikes.
The fallout has rattled the entire US banking sector, with dozens of other lenders seeing their shares plunge despite extraordinary measures announced by regulators last week to appease customers. Nearly 200 U.S. banks currently face risks similar to those that led to the collapses, according to a study published this week on the Social Science Research Network.
Buffett has helped banks before. He invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs following the 2008 financial crisis and the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings. Bank of America got a capital injection from the billionaire in 2011 when its stock fell due to subprime mortgage losses.
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