{"id":584461,"date":"2026-07-14T03:04:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T03:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/584461\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T03:04:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T03:04:32","slug":"a-canadian-banker-takes-the-wheel-at-berkshire-and-warren-buffett-says-hes-already-doing-it-better-than-he-ever-could","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/584461\/","title":{"rendered":"A Canadian banker takes the wheel at Berkshire \u2014 and Warren Buffett says he’s already doing it better than he ever could"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Greg<\/a> Greg Abel and Warren Buffett <\/p>\n

When investors wonder whether a new leader can truly fill an icon’s shoes, it usually takes years to find out. For Greg Abel, the Edmonton-born CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, it took about 48 hours. <\/p>\n

In only two days, Abel announced deals worth a combined US$16.8 billion (C$23.4 billion) \u2014 a US$6.8 billion (C$9.5 billion) purchase of homebuilder Taylor Morrison (1) Home Corp and a US$10 billion (C$13.9 billion) investment in Alphabet (2), Google’s parent company. <\/p>\n

Warren Buffett spent six decades building Berkshire into one of the world’s most valuable companies before passing the reins to Abel at the start of 2026. His assessment was direct. “Greg did that faster than I could have done it, smoother than I could have done it, and I never talked to the CEO. He has launched,” Buffett told CNBC’s Becky Quick. <\/p>\n

For Canadian investors who follow Berkshire \u2014 and there are many \u2014 this moment matters. Abel is one of their own: a kid from Edmonton (3) who delivered flyers, collected bottles for cash and earned a commerce degree from the University of Alberta before rising to the top of the investing world. <\/p>\n

Don’t Miss The two deals that defined the Abel era <\/p>\n

The first move was the Taylor Morrison acquisition \u2014 a classic value play. Berkshire agreed to pay US$72.50 a share in an all-cash deal, a 24% premium over the homebuilder’s previous closing price. Abel described Taylor Morrison as “a best-in-class national homebuilder” and hinted that he may combine it with Berkshire’s existing Clayton Homes subsidiary to create a unified homebuilding operation (4). <\/p>\n

Some Berkshire investors reacted with enthusiasm. Check Capital Management President Steven Check told Reuters (5) the move was “encouraging” and that investors had been “waiting for Greg to do his thing, beyond Warren Buffett’s shadow.” <\/p>\n

The second deal was less expected: a US$10 billion private investment in Alphabet as part of the tech giant’s US$84.75 billion equity raise that would help fund artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure \u2014 including data centres, chips and AI model development. Abel was able to negotiate a 6.5% discount (6) through a private placement rather than buying shares on the open market. <\/p>\n

This move by Abel course-corrects a well-documented mistake of Buffett’s. In 2019, he told investors he “blew it” (7) by not acting earlier and investing in Google, pointing to the company’s reliable ad revenue as the missed opportunity. The Alphabet deal suggests Abel shares that view \u2014 but he moved faster. <\/p>\n

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Are Buffett’s beliefs behind Abel’s purchases? <\/p>\n

The speed and scale of Abel’s moves might seem a departure from Berkshire’s famously cautious, cash-hoarding culture. But a closer look shows both deals are consistent with Berkshire’s long-term approach: Find solid businesses with strong competitive positions, then act when the price is right. <\/p>\n

The Taylor Morrison buy fits Berkshire’s preference for buying into cyclical industries when they’re at a low point. The homebuilding sector has been sluggish (8) in recent years, weighed down by high mortgage rates and stubborn affordability problems \u2014 a phenomenon on both sides of the border. For investors who believe housing demand will eventually bounce back, buying a leading builder during a downturn is exactly the kind of contrarian bet Berkshire has made many times before. <\/p>\n

The Alphabet investment is harder to call a classic value play, given how expensive AI stocks have become. But Alphabet has qualities (9) Berkshire typically looks for: a dominant market position, a strong balance sheet and a core advertising business that generates steady, reliable revenue. <\/p>\n

As of March 2026, Berkshire already held Alphabet as one of its top holdings (10). The new US$10 billion investment deepens that commitment significantly. <\/p>\n

Read more: <\/strong>3 essential money moves to make once you’ve saved $50,000<\/strong><\/a> <\/p>\n

The cash problem \u2014 and what it means for investors <\/p>\n

Despite the two headline-grabbing deals, Berkshire’s spending barely dented its reserves. The company held US$397.4 billion (C$554.4B) in cash as of March 31, 2026 \u2014 up 6.5% from December 31, 2025. At that scale, the US$16.8 billion invested in Alphabet and Taylor Morrison (C$23.4 billion) represents only 4.2% of the total cash pile. <\/p>\n

Critics have long argued that Berkshire’s reluctance to put its cash to work has held back the stock’s performance compared to the broader market. Berkshire Class B shares (11) were down roughly 1.56% for the year as of July 8, compared to a gain (12) of about 9% to 10% for the S&P 500 over the same period. CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert (13) put the challenge bluntly, asking: “If Berkshire isn’t buying back their stock, why should you?” <\/p>\n

The real test of the Abel era will be whether Berkshire can deploy its enormous cash reserves \u2014 and whether the returns justify holding its shares over a low-cost index fund. <\/p>\n

What this means for Canadian investors <\/p>\n

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B) is one of the most widely held U.S. stocks among Canadians, and Abel’s Edmonton roots have given the company an unusually strong following north of the border. <\/p>\n

Canadian investors can hold Berkshire shares through any major discount brokerage. But where you hold them matters \u2014 especially when it comes to taxes. <\/p>\n

Unlike many blue-chip U.S. stocks, Berkshire doesn’t pay a dividend. Thus, Canadian investors holding Berkshire inside a Tax-Free Savings Account<\/a> (TFSA) or a Registered Retirement Savings Plan<\/a> (RRSP) won’t face U.S. dividend withholding tax on this stock \u2014 because there are no dividends to withhold (14). <\/p>\n

For comparison: U.S. dividend-paying stocks held inside a TFSA are subject to a 15% withholding tax under U.S. rules \u2014 a tax that can’t be recovered through a foreign tax credit inside a TFSA. By contrast, U.S. dividends held inside an RRSP are exempt from U.S. withholding tax under the Canada-U.S. Tax Treaty. This means Canadian investors are generally better off holding U.S. dividend-paying stocks in their RRSP rather than their TFSA. However, for non-dividend payers like Berkshire, either account works from a tax perspective. <\/p>\n

For investors holding Berkshire in a non-registered (taxable) account, capital gains on U.S. stocks are reported to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) in Canadian dollars, calculated using the exchange rate at the time of purchase and sale. In Canada, only 50% of capital gains (15) are generally taxable. <\/p>\n

Currency is also a factor. With the loonie hovering around US$0.72 (roughly US$1 = C$1.395) as of early June 2026, a strengthening dollar could reduce the returns on U.S. holdings when converted back (16) to Canadian dollars \u2014 and a weakening dollar would push them higher. <\/p>\n

What Canadian investors can learn from Abel’s first moves <\/p>\n

Greg Abel’s opening weeks as Berkshire CEO offer a few broader lessons that apply well beyond the world of billion-dollar deals: <\/p>\n