Warren Buffett ’s Berkshire Hathaway holds nearly $100bn in financial services stocks, underscoring the size of the billionaire investor’s ongoing bet on the future of the US economy.

Berkshire’s position has built up over years and includes banks, payment companies, insurers and a ratings firm. Taken together, these holdings represent about one-fifth of Berkshire’s $481bn market capitalisation. By comparison, at the end of 2010, investments in these kinds of companies accounted for 12% of Berkshire’s market capitalisation.