Two financial heads certainly better than one
EVERYBODY loves a good double act; Beyonce and Jay Z, Ant and Dec, Batman and Robin and er, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger.
The latter had their moment in the spotlight this weekend with the annual Buffettpalooza, (read as: the Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting) for which almost 40,000 people packed into an auditorium in Omaha.
There were some takeaway thoughts: Warren Buffett can sing (his rendition of “My Way” was reportedly wonderful), Bill Gates is good at throwing newspapers (taking part in the annual newspaper toss) and Buffett reckons double acts are the key to success.
“Berkshire is better off with the two of us working together. There is no question about it,” he said of Munger.
Which got us to thinking – who have been our great financial double acts? Well, Bob Diamond and Rich Ricci were best of buds – the pair worked closely for Barclays Capital and Ricci was often referred to as his lieutenant. Standard Chartered had its own twosome in the form of Peter Sands and Richard Meddings, until Meddings said he was stepping down as finance director in January. Then there’s Sir Philip Green and his right-hand man Ian Grabiner, chief exec of Arcadia Group.
Who have we missed out? Get in touch with your suggestions: thecapitalist@cityam.com