Buffett’s Longtime Geico Leader Tony Nicely to Retire From Insurer

(Bloomberg) -- Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s Tony Nicely, who ran Geico for 25 years before beginning to step back in 2018, is retiring as executive chairman of the insurer. 

He will step down at the end of the year, Geico said in a statement Tuesday. Nicely assumed his current role after previously serving as both chairman and chief executive officer.

Nicely was a key figure at one of Berkshire’s most iconic operations, with Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett saying in his annual letter in 2019 that “the company and the man are inseparable.” Nicely was with the insurer in 1996 when it officially became part of Berkshire Hathaway, having begun working at Geico 60 years ago. 

Geico faced some leadership turnover after Nicely retired as CEO. Bill Roberts, who had been president of insurer, first took over, but was succeeded in 2020 by Todd Combs, who oversees billions of dollars as a money manager alongside Buffett and Ted Weschler at Berkshire.

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