BRUCE FLATT

Bruce Flatt joined Brookfield (then called Brascan) in 1990 and became CEO in 2002. Over the next two decades, he transformed what was essentially a Canadian real estate and power company into the world's largest alternative asset manager with over $900 billion in assets under management.

Brookfield owns an astonishing portfolio of real assets: hydroelectric power plants in Brazil, toll roads in India, data centers in Europe, office towers in Manhattan and London, ports across the globe, and renewable energy operations on every continent. Flatt's strategy was to buy real assets at good prices during downturns — he went on a buying spree during the 2008 financial crisis and again during COVID — and hold them forever.

He has been called the Warren Buffett of real assets, a comparison he does not discourage.

Brookfield Asset Management (CEO, $900B+ AUM), Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, Brookfield Renewable Partners, Brookfield Reinsurance

Flatt is a patient, value-oriented investor who focuses exclusively on real assets — things you can touch: buildings, dams, highways, pipelines, data centers. He buys during downturns when prices are depressed and holds for decades.

His investing framework is simple: buy high-quality real assets below replacement cost, use modest leverage, and earn steady returns from the cash flows. He has zero interest in technology stocks, venture capital, or anything that does not produce tangible cash flow.

Building Brookfield from a $20 billion Canadian company into a $900 billion global alternative investment giant. The 2008 financial crisis was Flatt's masterclass — while others panicked, Brookfield bought distressed real estate and infrastructure across the world at fire-sale prices.

Those assets generated enormous returns as markets recovered.

Brookfield's major office real estate portfolio has come under pressure as remote work reduces demand for office space. Some of Brookfield's office properties have seen declining valuations and tenant vacancies post-COVID.

The bet on a full return-to-office has not fully materialized.

Buy real assets below replacement cost and hold them forever. Flatt believes that infrastructure and real estate are the ultimate long-term investments because they produce inflation-protected cash flows, cannot be disrupted by technology, and appreciate over time.

The world always needs more power, more roads, and more buildings.

Married. Based in Toronto, Canada.

Extremely private — one of the least publicly visible billionaire CEOs in the world.

University of Manitoba (BComm). No MBA — learned investing entirely at Brookfield over 35 years.

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