If a major company needs capital or a private firm wants to sell, Warren Buffett’s checkbook is often the one they seek out.
Will that stay the case when it’s someone else’s signature?
That was the question from several Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders at the firm’s annual meeting Saturday, adding a fresh angle to the topic of succession for the 87-year-old chairman. Berkshire’s desire to utilize a cash pile that has grown to more than $100 billion makes finding large-scale deals a key issue for whoever will be the conglomerate’s next leader.
Buffett downplayed any unique skill he has to drum up deals,