Barclays vs Berkshire Hathaway: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: Barclays and Berkshire Hathaway side by side

1. 1690Barclays

   Founding on Lombard Street

   Quaker goldsmiths John Freame and Thomas Gould open their banking partnership on Lombard Street in the City of London, laying the foundational bedrock of modern commercial banking by issuing promissory notes and safeguarding merchant wealth.

2. 1736Barclays

   Adoption of the Barclays Name

   James Barclay, the son-in-law of John Freame, is admitted to the partnership, and the firm officially adopts the Barclays name, setting the stage for its future dominance and expansion into financing the British industrial revolution.

3. 1839Berkshire Hathaway

   Valley Falls Company Founded

   Oliver Chace founds the Valley Falls Company in Valley Falls, Rhode Island, as a cotton textile manufacturer. Chace had learned the trade working with Samuel Slater and built his first mill in 1806.

4. 1896Barclays

   Transition to a Joint-Stock Bank

   In a cultural and legal shift for the conservative Quaker leadership, Barclays transitions from a private partnership with unlimited liability to a joint-stock company, allowing it to raise the capital required to expand its branch network across the UK.

5. 1955Berkshire Hathaway

   Berkshire Fine Spinning and Hathaway Manufacturing Merge

   Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates and Hathaway Manufacturing combine and take the Berkshire Hathaway name.

6. 1960Barclays

   International Expansion and Credit Cards

   Barclays expands its international footprint, opening branches across Europe and the Americas, and becomes a pioneer in the UK consumer credit market by launching one of the first bank-issued credit cards, altering British consumer spending habits.

7. 1962Berkshire Hathaway

   Buffett Partnership Buys Its First Berkshire Shares

   Buffett Partnership Ltd. buys its first Berkshire Hathaway shares in December 1962. Buffett was drawn to the pattern of Berkshire closing plants and using the liquidation proceeds to repurchase its own stock.

8. 1964Berkshire Hathaway

   Tender Offer Dispute With Seabury Stanton

   Berkshire president Seabury Stanton asks Buffett at what price Buffett Partnership would sell, agrees to $11.50 a share, then mails a tender offer at $11.375.

9. 1965Berkshire Hathaway

   Buffett Takes Control and Names Ken Chace President

   Buffett Partnership takes control of Berkshire Hathaway in May 1965 and Stanton leaves. Buffett selects Ken Chace, a long-time employee, as president to run the textile operation, and the cash it generates is pointed at other industries.

10. 1967Berkshire Hathaway

    Entry Into Insurance With National Indemnity

    Early in 1967 Berkshire pays $8.6 million to buy National Indemnity Company and a small sister insurer from owner Jack Ringwalt.

11. 1972Berkshire Hathaway

    See's Candies Bought for $25 Million

    Blue Chip Stamps, controlled by Buffett and Munger and later merged into Berkshire, buys See's Candies for $25 million.

12. 1985Berkshire Hathaway

    Textile Operations Closed

    Buffett decides in July 1985 to close Berkshire's textile operation and the shutdown is largely complete by year end. He described it as finally throwing in the towel after twenty years of unremitting struggle with the business.

13. 1986Barclays

    The 'Big Bang' and Investment Banking

    Following the deregulation of the London Stock Exchange, Barclays expands its securities trading and corporate advisory capabilities, transitioning from a traditional commercial bank into a strong player in the global capital markets.

14. 1996Berkshire Hathaway

    GEICO Becomes Wholly Owned and Class B Shares Created

    Berkshire buys the remaining 49% of GEICO on January 2, 1996, having held 51%, and GEICO becomes a wholly owned subsidiary. Shareholders also approve a recapitalization creating Class B shares with the economic rights of one thirtieth of a Class A share.

15. 1998Berkshire Hathaway

    General Re and Executive Jet Acquired

    Berkshire acquires reinsurer General Re and fractional-aircraft operator Executive Jet.

16. 2000Barclays

    Acquisition of The Woolwich

    Barclays acquires The Woolwich, the UK's second-largest building society, in a $5.7 billion deal, instantly cementing its dominance in the British mortgage market and significantly expanding its retail deposit base.

17. 2008Barclays

    The Lehman Brothers Acquisition

    In a frantic weekend rescue during the height of the global financial crisis, Barclays acquires the North American operations of the collapsed Lehman Brothers, instantly transforming the bank into a global bulge-bracket investment bank.

18. 2010Berkshire Hathaway

    BNSF Railway Acquired

    Berkshire completes its purchase of Burlington Northern Santa Fe in the first quarter of 2010.

19. 2012Barclays

    The LIBOR Manipulation Scandal

    Barclays is hit with nearly $500 million in fines by global regulators for its role in manipulating the LIBOR benchmark interest rate, leading to the resignation of the CEO and Chairman and forcing a complete overhaul of the bank's compliance culture.

20. 2016Berkshire Hathaway

    Precision Castparts Acquired

    Berkshire completes the purchase of Precision Castparts, an aerospace and industrial components maker, for $235 a share in cash.

21. 2017Barclays

    Spin-off of African Operations

    Barclays completes the demerger of its African retail banking operations into the independent Absa Group, retreating from emerging market retail banking to focus on its core UK and global corporate franchises.

22. 2018Berkshire Hathaway

    Abel and Jain Named Vice Chairmen

    Berkshire's board expands from twelve to fourteen directors and elects Greg Abel and Ajit Jain.

23. 2022Berkshire Hathaway

    Alleghany Corporation Acquired

    Berkshire completes the acquisition of insurer Alleghany Corporation on October 19, 2022, paying $848.02 a share in cash for a total equity value of about $11.6 billion and adding the TransRe reinsurance business.

24. 2024Barclays

    Sale of US Consumer Bank to Equifax

    Barclays executes an effective strategic purification by selling its US consumer credit card portfolio to Equifax, shedding low-return, capital-intensive assets to focus on high-yielding corporate lending and top fixed-income trading.

25. 2024Berkshire Hathaway

    Market Value Tops $1 Trillion

    Berkshire's market capitalization passes $1 trillion on August 28, 2024, making it the first US company outside the technology sector to reach that level.

26. 2024Berkshire Hathaway

    Pilot Travel Centers Fully Owned

    Berkshire acquires the remaining 20% of Pilot Travel Centers on January 16, 2024 and takes full ownership. It had bought 38.6% in 2017 and a further 41.4% for about $8.2 billion in January 2023.

27. 2025Berkshire Hathaway

    Board Approves Abel as CEO From January 2026

    Berkshire announces in May 2025 that Greg Abel will become President and Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2026, with Warren Buffett remaining Chairman of the Board.

28. 2026Berkshire Hathaway

    Abel Becomes CEO and Buffett Becomes Chairman Emeritus

    Abel takes over as CEO on January 1, 2026 and Berkshire completes the $9.7 billion purchase of OxyChem from Occidental on January 2. On September 18, 2026 Buffett is named Chairman Emeritus and remains a director, and his son Howard G.

Acquisitions

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