The Would Be 63 Quintillion Man: James Simons vs. Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett is usually considered the greatest investor of all time but one thing that is often overlooked is how much his longevity has helped. Yes, he is worth $110 billion. Yes, he’s compounded money at a 22% annualized rate.
But he also started investing in stocks at age 10 and is now 91. That is 81 years of compounding. By the way, 95% of his wealth accrued after age 65.
If he had started investing at 30 and quit by 50, he’d be worth about $12 million. Respectable, but nothing to write home about.
84-year old James Simons on the other hand, has compounded money at 3x the rate of Buffett--66% since 1988 (aged 50) and is worth $28 Billion i.e. Buffett is 4x wealthier!
If James Simons had be investing as long as Buffett and maintained the same compounding rate, guess how much he’d be worth? Drum roll please...
Sixty-three quintillion, nine hundred quadrillion, seven hundred eighty-one trillion, seven hundred eighty billion, seven hundred forty-eight million one hundred sixty thousand dollars.
That is the power of compounding!
Story source: Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Image Credit: LinkedIn Pulse
