Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A, BRK.B) has fully exited its long-running investment in Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD.
The move marks the end of one of the most successful bets in the investment firm’s history.
Notably, Berkshire initially purchased 225 million BYD shares in 2008 for $230 million at the urging of Charlie Munger. Over 17 years, that stake skyrocketed nearly 3,900%, peaking at around $9 billion in the second quarter of 2022, according to Berkshire Hathaway’s financial reports.
The exit was gradual, with Berkshire beginning to trim its holdings in August 2022, and by June 2023, it had sold nearly 76% of the stake, dropping its ownership below 5%.
At that level, the company was no longer required to disclose additional sales under Hong Kong rules. By early 2024, filings showed the value of the investment declining from $5.1 billion in Q3 2022 to $1.7 billion in Q2 2024.
By Q1 2025, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which held the position, reported the investment at zero.
The investment ranks among Buffett’s most profitable ever, reinforcing his reputation as one of the world’s most astute investors.
BYD’s challenging period
Interestingly, the exit coincides with one of the most challenging periods for BYD. The Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) rival recently reported its first quarterly profit decline in three and a half years as China’s EV market faces slowing demand and intensifying price wars.
Domestic sales, which account for 80% of its deliveries, have fallen for four consecutive months, forcing the company to cut its 2025 sales target by as much as 16%.
While it has expanded into Asia and Latin America, its push into Europe is being squeezed by tariffs of up to 35%. In the United States, BYD has been shut out by 100% tariffs, as policymakers move to protect domestic automakers.
Despite overtaking Tesla as the world’s largest EV maker in 2023, BYD’s ambitious plan to generate more than half of its sales outside China by 2030 looks increasingly uncertain.
It’s worth noting that, earlier this year, BYD posed stiff competition for Tesla in key markets such as Europe, at a time when the American EV maker was struggling with falling sales and mounting backlash tied to CEO Elon Musk’s political views.
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