How Buffett Made 30 Times His Money on BYD, Then Sold

In 2008 Berkshire Hathaway bought about 10% of China's BYD for roughly $230 million (about 225 million Hong Kong shares), at the urging of Charlie Munger, who admired its founder Wang Chuanfu. Berkshire began selling in August 2022 and has since exited. Reports put the gain at 30 times or more, but "Buffett knew" overstates it: the bet was on a person and a battery business, not on the electric car boom.

• The idea came from Munger, and Buffett has never claimed deep knowledge of EVs.
• Berkshire held through a 13-year rise, then sold in many small steps.
• The lesson is about backing a founder, not about predicting the industry.

This is educational analysis, not investment advice. Figures are readings from early November 2026, mostly from press reports and company filings, and they will move.

How did Berkshire come to own BYD?

In September 2008, during the financial crisis, Berkshire's MidAmerican Energy unit agreed to buy about 10% of BYD, then a Chinese maker of mobile-phone batteries that had just started making cars. Reports put the price at about HK$8 a share, for around $230 million in total. Munger had met Wang Chuanfu, a chemist who built the company from scratch, and pushed for the deal. He later described Wang as a mix of Thomas Edison and Jack Welch.

The timing was lucky as well as clever. Chinese stocks had fallen hard, BYD was cheap, and Berkshire had cash when few others did. That is a pattern Buffett has described often: be willing to buy when others are fearful.

How much did Berkshire make?

Sources disagree on the totals, because the stock was split and the profit depends on when each tranche sold. Everyone agrees the gain was one of Berkshire's best, and that most of it came from holding through the long climb.

Why was BYD a success?

• Batteries first: BYD began by making rechargeable batteries, so its cost of the most expensive EV part was low.
• Vertical integration: it makes batteries, motors and chips itself, which lowers cost and speeds up design.
• Home market: China became the largest EV market, helped by subsidies and policy.
• Price range: BYD sells from cheap hybrids to premium models, while rivals focused on one tier.

By 2025 BYD was reported to be outselling Tesla in battery-electric vehicles worldwide. That is a long way from a 2008 company that most investors outside China had never heard of.

Did Buffett really see it coming?

Not in the sense the headline suggests. Munger found the company and the founder, and Buffett accepted. Buffett has said he does not understand every business he owns and relies on people he trusts. The case was about management quality and a low price, not a forecast that electric cars would become the main way to travel.

That also explains the exit. Selling began in 2022, long before BYD stopped growing. Berkshire has not given a detailed explanation, so any reason is a guess. Observers point to the high valuation after the rally, Munger's death in 2023, and rising tension between the US and China.

What can you learn from the BYD trade?

• Back the founder, then verify. The bet worked because Wang kept reinvesting and the numbers followed.
• Cheap in a crisis helps. A 2008 entry price cannot be repeated now, so do not assume today's BYD offers the same return.
• Selling is a decision, too. Berkshire sold slowly, even as the stock kept rising, which means it left money on the table and it did not care.
• Track what great investors own, not only what they sold. Filings come late. See how to read a 13F and the Berkshire Hathaway page.

BYD is not in the stock universe this site screens, so it has no stock page and no value checks here. For US-listed companies with quality and value filters, use the screener.

What does the BYD story say about Berkshire's approach?

Berkshire's usual approach is to buy businesses it understands and hold them for decades. BYD was an exception: a Chinese company in an industry Buffett did not know, bought on the word of a partner he trusted. The bet was small for Berkshire, about $230 million against a company worth hundreds of billions, so a loss would not have hurt.

That small size is the lesson: if you are unsure, limit the amount, so that being wrong is cheap and being right still matters.

Can an individual investor repeat this?

Not by copying. BYD's 2008 price cannot be bought again, and an investor who buys because Berkshire once did is buying at today's price, which reflects the success. What can be repeated is the process: find a founder with a record, buy when others are fearful and let time work.

• Look for businesses with a clear edge such as low cost, as BYD had in batteries.
• Check the founder's incentives, including how much of the company the founder owns.
• Respect the exit. Berkshire sold slowly over years, which lowers the risk of selling too early.

What do the filings let you verify?

Berkshire's US 13F lists its US-listed holdings, so a Hong Kong-listed stock like BYD never appeared there. Changes in its stake were reported in Hong Kong exchange filings, which is where each sale was disclosed. This is a reminder that no single filing shows everything a fund owns, as explained in how to read a 13F.

What terms should you know?

Sources

• Fortune: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and BYD (March 2021)
• Business Standard: Buffett's Berkshire trims stake in BYD (August 2022)
• Business Insider: Berkshire has made nearly 40 times its money on BYD

For another well-known investor and his views on passive funds, see why Bill Ackman is worried about how people invest.

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