![]() ![]() The investment team of HWIC benefited from the subprime fallout, like John Paulson's New York-based Paulson & Co., Kyle Bass' Hayman Capital, Andrew Lahde's California-based Lahde Capital, Julian Robertson's "Tiger Cubs" (formerly known as " Tiger Management Corp."), and Michael Burry's Scion Capital (White Mountains Insurance Group is a minority investor in Scion Capital LLC), they have used derivatives to bet on the housing bubble. In an interview in The Globe and Mail in 2007, Watsa said believed that the global credit squeeze is in its "early days", and indicated he believed there may be similarities to the Japanese asset price bubble. Subprime mortgage bubble Īs early as the 2003, in an annual report issued by the company, chief executive Prem Watsa raised concerns about securitized products and talks about the subprime mortgage crisis and the United States housing bubble. His 10-for-1 multiple voting shares give him just over 50% ownership. He owns roughly 10% of Fairfax, which accounts for 99% of his personal wealth. Watsa, directly, and indirectly through 1109519 Ontario Limited, The Sixty Two Investment Company Limited and 810679 Ontario Ltd., owns the controlling equity voting interest of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited ("Fairfax"). Prem Watsa has served as chairman and chief executive officer of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited since 1985 and as vice president of Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel since 1985. In May 1987, Watsa re-organized Markel Financial Holdings Limited and renamed it Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (FAIRFAX: short for "fair, friendly acquisitions").įrom 1985 to the end of 2010, the firm had a compound growth rate of approximately 25% in book value per share (per year), it is about 243 times what Fairfax began with in 1985. The company was controlled by the Virginia-based Markel family.įairfax Financial Holdings Limited In 1985, Watsa took control of Markel Financial, a Canadian-based specialist in trucking insurance. ![]() The five founding partners were: Tony Hamblin, Prem Watsa, Roger Lace, Brian Bradstreet and Frances Burke. Tony was the Chief Investment Officer at Confed. together with his former boss from Confed, Tony Hamblin. In 1984, Prem Watsa left GW Asset Management to found his own asset management firm, Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Ltd. The name was subsequently changed to Markel Financial Holdings Ltd. History Market įairfax was incorporated as Markel Service of Canada on March 13, 1951, and continued under the Canada Business Corporations Act in 1976. įairfax is led by chairman and CEO Prem Watsa, who controls nearly half of the firm. The company was also the largest shareholder of Torstar with 40% of the Class B shares, as of May 2020. The company operates primarily through several subsidiaries, including Allied World, Odyssey Re, Northbridge Financial, Crum & Forster, Verassure Insurance, Onlia Agency Inc., and Zenith Insurance Company. Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited is a Canadian financial holding company based in Toronto, Ontario, engaged in property, casualty, insurance and reinsurance, investment management, and insurance claims management.
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