The Watsa family is the founder of Toronto-based property and insurance conglomerate, Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. Prem Watsa started Fairfax in 1985 and serves as its Chairman and CEO.
Often compared to Warren Buffett for his similar investing strategy, Prem Watsa left Hyderabad, India to join his brother David in Ontario, Canada in 1972. Originally a chemical engineer, Watsa sold door to door to pay his way through the University of Western Ontario’s School Of Business. After graduating, he worked as an air conditioning salesman before securing his first position in the investment sector with Confederation Life in 1974. A little over a decade later, Watsa founded Fairfax, which today owns property and casualty insurance globally, boasts yearly revenue of over $18 billion and owns stakes in companies such as BlackBerry and General Electric. Prem Watsa’s net worth is estimated at $1 billion. Prem’s son, Ben Watsa, is a Fairfax Holdings board member and investment analyst.
