Does anyone have a good article/vid behind the BYD story? I’ve only heard of them this year and now they’re everywhere (outselling many makers here in Brazil too).
>BYD (for “Build Your Dreams”) is a Chinese manufacturer of automobiles and batteries that is building electric bus fleets and monorails for cities around the world. Berkshire Hathaway bought a large stake in the country in 2008. Wang, a trained chemist and the company’s low-key founder, is worth about U.S.$5.5 billion.
> Charlie Munger, Buffett’s long-time business partner and Berkshire Hathaway’s vice chairman, first suggested investing in BYD, Buffett told Quick. “Charlie called me one day and says, ‘We’ve got to buy BYD. This guy runs it better than Thomas Edison.’ And I said, ‘That isn’t good enough.’ And he called a little later and said, ‘He’s a combination of Edison and Bill Gates.’ And I said, ‘Well, you’re warming up but it still isn’t good enough.'”
> Eventually, Munger’s view prevailed. “Now it’s worked out so well that I’m actually starting to remember that it was my idea,” Buffett said. Of Wang, he added, “He’s got big, big ideas and he’s very good at executing.”