- Chinese social media is treating Charlie Munger, who died at 99 on Tuesday, with great reverence.
- Weibo, which is often filled with anti-US messages, was flooded with tributes to Munger.
- Even state media published a list of Munger’s one-liners, and many posts lauded him for his old age.
As Wall Street mourns the death of investing legend Charlie Munger, Chinese social media is tipping its hat to the man.
A collective sense of awe toward the longtime Berkshire Hathaway lieutenant has accumulated on Weibo — China’s version of Twitter — for both his age and knack for growing wealth.
Though Munger, who died on Tuesday, has in recent years applauded some of China’s policies and crackdowns, it was his wisdom and maxims that took center stage on Weibo.
Praise for American figures and notaries amid rising US-China tensions is becoming rare on Weibo, which is heavily moderated and often aligns with the central government’s views.
The Paper, a state-owned media outlet, published a list of Munger’s “top 10 investment principles,” which were more akin to guidelines for life. Sina Finance, a news arm of one of China’s largest tech firms, posted a similar list.
Comments and posts about Munger hit 290 million views just hours after the announcement of his death, and the count is rising rapidly, per data seen by Business Insider.
Most hailed Munger as a centenarian and a man who oversaw a large, multigenerational family. He died one month before what would have been his 100th birthday.
“He was a hundred years old, wise and wealthy, a master of investment, children and grandchildren aplenty, and passed away peacefully,” wrote financial blogger “Investing Logically.” “A real winner in life, I’ll pay tribute to his wisdom.”
“Live long, be rich, have children and grandchildren, what a perfect life,” wrote another user under a news report about his death.
“The wise man has passed away. Thank you, Munger, for your selfless sharing of life’s wisdom,” another wrote with a crying emoji.
Munger, who amassed a net worth of around $2.3 billion, had a reputation for witty one-liners on life, geopolitics, business, and governance.
He is known for being Warren Buffet’s right-hand man, and for helping to grow Berkshire Hathaway from a Nebraska textile company into a nearly $800 billion empire.
Munger drew attention in the last few years for praising China and its economic boom, saying in 2021 that Beijing’s communist party had been “smarter about handling booms than capitalist America.”
And when Chinese leader Xi Jinping punished Alibaba mogul Jack Ma over his criticism of the government, Munger said the “Communists did the right thing” because Ma had overstepped.
“I certainly would like to have the financial part of it in my own country,” Munger said, when asked if he wanted any of China’s system replicated in the US.
Munger, who was outspoken against cryptocurrencies, also lauded China’s main bank for banning crypto in 2021.
He lamented souring US-China relations in May, saying both Washington and Beijing were “equally guilty of being stupid” by antagonizing each other.
One of Berkshire Hathaway’s most prominent Chinese investments is BYD, the EV maker rivaling Elon Musk’s Tesla.
But it has repeatedly reduced its shares in the Shenzhen-based firm, slashing its stake from 25% in 2008 to less than 8% in October.
