Warren Buffett is a high-profile public figure who comes off as gregarious and folksy in his interviews and appearances. Based on his easy manner, his obvious delight in storytelling, the raptness of hisaudiences, and his willingness to endure the shame of strumming a ukulele in public, we might be inclined to think of him as an extrovert. Nonetheless, the “Oracle of Omaha” is often cited as a case study in introverts as effective leaders.
For the past several decades, Buffett has been a regular on “World’s Richest” lists, which tends to imbue one’s words with a certain amount of heft and keep audiences on the edges of their seats.
As a younger man, though, he struggled to persuade others of the value of his ideas. And even though he has largely overcome his challenges in communicating, his life and career are defined by many of the typical traits of the introvert.
Early glimmers of introvert genius...
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 19: Warren Buffett attends the "Becoming Warren Buffett" World Premiere at The Museum of Modern Art on January 19, 2017 in New York City.
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is said to be preparing to invest at least $285 million in the Indian company that runs the popular digital payments and online financial services firm, Paytm.
The Mumbai-based Economic Timesreported the talks Monday, noting that if Berkshire follows through by paying $285.4 million to $356.7 million for a 3-4% stake in One97 Communications, it would be Buffett’s first direct investment in India.
Bloomberg subsequently reported that Berkshire has agreed to buy the stake, and a formal announcement will follow in the next few days.
PayTm is India's top mobile payments firm.
ùWarren Buffett's company has taken a stake in One97 Communications Ltd, which owns Paytm,
Berkshire Hathaway(BRKA) had been discussing for several months an investment of about 25 billion rupees ($360 million) that would value Paytm at around $10 billion, a source familiar with the transaction told on Monday.
There are lot of tractions made in India by PayTm app. This market is going to be very competitive, and you need deeper pockets to survive for a long time.
paytm transction on indias street with QR codes
Paytm is India's biggest online payments firm with more than 300 million users.
Indians love to do business in cash, and most transactions in the country are still conducted in rupee notes and coins.
But Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock decision to ban 86% of India's cash in November 2016 gave a big boost to online wallets such as Paytm, which signed up around 10 million new users within a month.
It is the market leader in mobile payments, with more than 300 million users, and has also started an online retail platform called Paytm Mall to take on Amazon(AMZN) and Flipkart, which was bought byWalmart(WMT) earlier this year.
India's large young population with growing disposable incomes make it a hugely promising market for mobile payments and online shopping, said Kenny Liew, an analyst at research firm Fitch Solutions.
CHINA SEEK INFLUENCE IN EUROPE, BUSINESS DEALS AT A TIME
Image
The Chinese president Xi Jinping, center right, welcoming Milos Zeman, his Czech counterpart, center left, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in 2015. Ye Jianming, far left, headed CEFC China Energy, which spent more than $1 billion on deals in the Czech Republic.CreditCreditLucie Mikolaskova/Czech News Agency, via Associated Press.
PRAGUE — When Xi Jinping became the first top Chinese leader to visit the Czech Republic, he was accompanied by a mysterious Chinese tycoon with big political ambitions, money to burn and strong ties to the Czech president.
Ye Jianming was the sole businessman among the group of Chinese and Czech government officials who gathered two years ago outside the presidential summer residence where Mr. Xi and Milos Zeman, his Czech counterpart, planted ginkgo trees. For Mr. Ye, it was recognition of his role as a major power broker in Prague, having bought landmark properties, a local brewery and a much beloved soccer team.
The meeting — and the presence of Mr. Ye — cemented China’s newfound influence on politics and business in Mr. Zeman’s Czech Republic and signaled its broader ambitions in Europe.
In just two years Mr. Ye’s company, CEFC China Energy, had spent more than $1 billion on deals in the Czech Republic. He hired former Czech officials, including a onetime defense minister. Mr. Ye was even named a special economic adviser to Mr. Zeman.
Mr. Zeman, in turn, became a big backer of Beijing, tamping down domestic opposition to Chinese influence and taking up Chinese causes. He publicly supported China’s claims over Taiwan, the democratic island that Beijing claims as its territory. When Mr. Xi visited, police tried to keep protesters out of sight; some later accused the police of using violence to suppress them. The family of a prominent Holocaust survivor said Mr. Zeman withdrew a proposed medal for the man after his nephew met with the Dalai Lama, an exiled spiritual leader whom China considers a rebel.
Image
Supporters of Mr. Xi demonstrated during his visit in Prague in 2016.CreditFilip Singer/EPA, via Shutterstock
For China, the Czech courtship was an unqualified victory: It had won a sure friend in Europe, an American military ally and a country once seen as a bulwark for liberal democracy in a strategically important region. As Mr. Zeman declared, the Czech Republic hoped to become “an unsinkable aircraft carrier of Chinese investment expansion” in Europe.
Then, Mr. Ye was detained in China this year, exposing the Czech Republic to the perils of this new relationship and forcing the president to defend his quick embrace of the Chinese deal maker. While the reason for Mr. Ye’s detention was never made public, critics of the Czech president saw Mr. Ye’s disappearance as proof that the country shouldn’t have tied its future and its fortune to the Chinese.
An emboldened, globally ambitious China is using money, business deals and other incentives to extend its power abroad. The pitch can hold great appeal in a world shaken by Washington’s growing disengagement and Europe’s struggles.
But tighter ties to China mean greater susceptibility to an opaque political system where decisions are made behind the scenes. Investments can be driven by politics rather than economics, resulting in costly white elephants.
In the Czech Republic, Mr. Ye’s sudden disappearance took the country’s leaders by surprise. They couldn’t discern why that would happen to someone who seemed to have the government’s blessing. They had not pressed him on where he was getting his money to make big flashy deals in the Czech Republic and elsewhere. Officials also had difficulty answering questions about criminal allegations in the United States that a senior business associate of CEFC had tried to bribe his way into new business opportunities in Africa.
Mr. Zeman dispatched a team of officials to determine what the tycoon’s problems meant for the Czech Republic. He soon found out.
Tajinderpal Singh Toor clinched the men's Shot Put gold with a record-shattering throw to open India's medal account in athletics in the Asian Games on Saturday. The 23-year-old Toor sent the iron ball to a national record distance of 20.75m to win his maiden Asian Games medal on the opening day of the athletics competition. India's squash singles campaign in the Asian Games yielded three bronze medals after Saurav Ghosal, Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinappa lost their respective semifinal clashes on Saturday. Following an action-packed week at the 2018 Asian Games, India will be looking to add to the 29 medals on the eighth day of the quadrennial event. (MEDAL TALLY)
Live updates of Asian Games 2018, Day 8 straight from Jakarta, Indonesia
11:33 IST: In Badminton, Saina Nehwal faces Ratchanok Intanon in women's singles quarterfinals. Follow the LIVE BLOG HERE.
11:30 IST: In Volleyball, India lose the first set 25-23 against Japan in men's classification match.
11:04 IST: In Handball, India lose 31-35 to Chinese Taipei in men's Handball Main Round - Group 3 match.
10:50 IST: In Shooting, India's Ganemat Sekhon and Rashmi Rathore are currently placed 10th and 12th respectively in women's skeet Qualification Day 2. In men's skeet Qualification Day 2, India's Sheeraj Shiekh and Angad Vir Singh Bajwa are currently placed sixth and 13th respectively.
10:25 IST: In Canoe, India finish 5th in men's Canoe TBR 500m semifinal 1, fail to qualify.
Asian Games 2018 Day 8, Live updates: Saina Nehwal wins first game in QF; Fouaad Mirza clinches equestrian silver
13:01 (IST)
BADMINTON
7-3! Nehwal is looking like a completely different player in the second game. The early exchanges suggest that she has taken the attacking approach against Intanon, whose wristy strokes aren't troubling the Indian anymore.
First game to Saina. A typical counterattack, but the last few points were won by attrition. Some signs of either lack of concentration or fatigue from Intanon. Could also be frustrating because she blew a five-point lead.
Handball
After a tight start, the Indian men’s team trails Chinese Taipei 12-15 at the end of the first half in their group match.
10:00 (IST)
India’s men’s compound team has won their Round of 16 match against Qatar 4-0. Rajat Chauhan, Aman Saini and Abhishek Verma win 57-52, 56-55, 56-54, 58-52 after hitting three bullseyes.
09:37 (IST)
That's it then!
Sutirtha Mukherjee beats Faramarzi Maha 11-3, 11-3, 11-6 in the third clash of the match.
The Indian women's table tennis team registers a dominating win.
09:35 (IST)
India’s Anu Raghavan finishes third in her heat of the women’s 400m hurdles heats with a timing of 56.77 seconds. She qualifies to the final.
As one of the two fastest losers, Jauna Murmu also qualifies.
09:20 (IST)
India’s Anu Raghavan finishes third in her heat of the women’s 400m hurdles heats with a timing of 56.77 seconds. She qualifies to the final.
As one of the two fastest losers, Jauna Murmu also qualifies.
09:18 (IST)
TABLE-TENNIS
It's a four-setter in the second match! Ayhika Mukherjee gets past Mohamed Aia 11-2, 10-12, 11-2, 11-3 to give India a 2-0 lead over Qatar.
09:11 (IST)
ATHLETICS
Time for Heat 2. Asian Championships silver medallist Anu Raghavan will be in action.
09:09 (IST)
A disappointing run. Jauma Murmu fails to set a time in the women's 400m hurdles event.
09:01 (IST)
ATHLETICS
The women’s 400m hurdles is also about to begin, with India’s Jauna Murmu and Anu Raghavan in the fray.
BADMINTONFirst game to Saina. A typical counterattack, but the last few points were won by attrition. Some signs of either lack of concentration or fatigue from Intanon. Could also be frustrating because she blew a five-point lead.
TABLE-TENNIS
ATHLETICS
