2012 as a second investment manager. In Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder letter dated February 25, 2012, Buffett said that his successor as CEO had been chosen internally but not named publicly. While the intent of this message was to bolster confidence in the leadership of a "Buffett-less Berkshire", critics have noted that this strategy of choosing a successor without a concrete exit strategy for the sitting CEO often leaves an organization with fewer long term options, while doing little to calm shareholder fear. In June 2014, the firm's cash and cash equivalents rose past $50 billion, the first time it finished a quarter above that level since Buffett became chairman and chief executive officer. At the end of 2017, the firm's cash and cash equivalent holdings rose to $116 billion. On January 10, 2018, Berkshire Hathaway appointed Ajit Jain and Greg Abel to vice-chairman roles. Abel was appointed vice chairman for non-insurance business operations, and Jain became vice chairman of insurance-operations. While Buffett has not further elaborated on his succession plans, he praised his two top executives in an annual shareholder letter, fuelling speculation that Jain and Abel are the logical successors. On May 3, 2021, Warren Buffett chose Greg Abel to be his successor as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Finance For the fiscal year 2019, Berkshire Hathaway reported earnings of 81.4 billion, with an annual revenue of 254.6 billion, an increase of 2.7% over the previous fiscal cycle. Berkshire Hathaway's market capitalization was valued at over 496 billion in September 2018. , Berkshire Hathaway is ranked third on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. Businesses and investments Insurance group Insurance and reinsurance business activities are conducted through approximately 70 domestic and foreign-based insurance companies. Berkshire's insurance businesses provide insurance and reinsurance of property and casualty risks primarily in the United States. In addition, as a result of the General Re acquisition in December 1998, Berkshire's insurance businesses also includes life, accident, and health reinsurers, as well as internationally based property and casualty reinsurers. Berkshire's insurance companies maintain capital strength at exceptionally high levels. This strength differentiates Berkshire's insurance companies from their competitors. Collectively, the aggregate statutory surplus of Berkshire's U.S.-based insurers was approximately $48 billion . All of Berkshire's major insurance subsidiaries are rated AAA by Standard & Poor's Corporation, the highest Financial Strength Rating assigned by Standard & Poor's, and are