V. Prem Watsa
$2.02B
as of 10/04/24
About V. Prem Watsa
Prem Watsa founded Toronto-based financial services firm Fairfax Financial Holdings in 1985 and remains its chairman and CEO.
Born in Hyderabad, India, Watsa later joined his brother in Canada, and then enrolled in the University of Western Ontario's MBA program.
He paid his way through school by selling appliances door-to-door and, after a stint as an investment analyst, struck out on his own in 1984.
He began acquiring insurance companies, modeling his business after the success of his idol, Warren Buffett.
Fairfax now has property and casualty insurance and reinsurance interests across the world plus stakes in companies that include BlackBerry and GE.
Personal stats
Citizenship
CanadaSource of wealth
Insurance, investmentsResidence
Toronto, CanadaMarital status
MarriedBirth date
08/05/50 (age 74)Number of children
3Self-made
self-madeV. Prem Watsa’s fortune is worth
34K
troy ounces of gold
31K
median U.S. household
20K
median U.S. income
0.04%
U.S. credit card volume
0.008%
GDP of the United States
0.006%
United States debt
Net worth history
Annual ranking
Net worth over time
Real-time ranking
Financial assets
US OTC | FFXXF-US
Fairfax Africa Holdings CorpTORONTO | FFH-CA
Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.US OTC | FFXDF-US
Fairfax India Holdings CorporationTORONTO | RECP-CA
Recipe UnlimitedTORONTO | BB-CA
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