Nail the crooks: Buffett

Warren Buffett, the billionaire American investor, has called on the authorities to come down harder on high-finance rogues instead of gouging huge fines out of the companies that employ them.

The Berkshire Hathaway chief said the threat of going to jail would be more effective in stamping out illegal behaviour at the major banks than financial sanctions that punish staff and shareholders who did no wrong.

"The way to change behaviour is to have the fear that it is going to come home to them and hit them hard. I believe very much in the prosecution of individuals."

The man known as "The Sage of Omaha" made the remarks at the annual shareholder conference of his Berkshire Hathaway investment fund, attended by 40000 people who flocked to his home town in Nebraska to hear his advice.

Buffett's comments on punishing financial miscreants follows a year in which most major US banks have been hit with tens of billions of dollars in fines relating to the Libor-rigging scandal, rogue traders, and the mis-selling of mortgage-backed securities before the 2008 financial collapse.

On Saturday, the billionaire and his business partner, Charlie Munger, 90, faced a fresh round of questions about the future leadership of the company, which is expected to fall to Buffett's eldest son, Howard.

Wisdom from The Sage of Omaha

Rule No1: Never lose money; Rule No2: Never forget rule No1;

It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price;

Only buy something that you'd be perfectly happy to hold if the market were to be shut down for 10 years;

We attempt to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful;

Why not invest your assets in the companies you really like? As Mae West said, "Too much of a good thing can be wonderful".