V . Prem Watsa is an Indian-Canadian billionaire who is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Fairfax Financial Holdings, a Toronto-based insurance and investment holding company. He is often referred to as the "Warren Buffett of Canada" due to his successful application of a long-term, value-investing philosophy that is similar to that of the Berkshire Hathaway chairman. Born in Hyderabad, India, he immigrated to Canada in the 1970s and began his career in the insurance industry.

In 1985, he took control of a small, struggling Canadian trucking insurance company, which became the foundation of Fairfax. He has since built the company into a massive global enterprise through a series of acquisitions of other insurance and reinsurance companies. Like Berkshire Hathaway, Fairfax uses the 'float'—the premiums that are collected from policyholders before claims are paid out—to make a wide range of investments in public and private companies. His savvy and often contrarian investment decisions have been the key to his immense success and wealth.