Salomon Brothers

Berkshire invested $700 million in Salomon Brothers convertible preferred in 1987, and Buffett became interim chairman in 1991 when a Treasury bond bidding scandal emerged. His handling of the crisis 鈥?'lose money for the firm and I will be understanding; lose a shred of reputation and I will be ruthless' 鈥?became one of the most-quoted crisis management frameworks in business history.