At first blush, Berkshire Hathaway's recent early-stage fintech investments may seem out of place. But they do fit with Warren Buffett's longtime strategy of making multiple bets across an entire industry. Berkshire's newest industry bet appears to be on payments. In addition to the start-ups revealed this week, Berkshire Hathaway has a significant stake in the three largest U.S. incumbents - Visa, Mastercard and American Express
Berkshire Hathaway has invested about $600 million in two emerging markets payments companies — Paytm and StoneCo, according to The Wall Street Journal. While it’s rare for Berkshire to invest in early stage tech, it’s not so rare for the holding company to make bets across a particular industry like airlines or banks. The firm is now betting on payments. In addition to the fintech companies, Berkshire owns Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. “Payments are a huge deal worldwide,” Warren Buffett said at this year’s Berkshire shareholder meeting.
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