Warren Buffett Has 1 Piece of Advice for Investors Worried About a Crash, and History Proves It Works
2026-10-24 08:44
•Keith Speights •The Motley Fool
• ••••••••••••• Axe Cap view
Buffett’s Call: Buy Good Companies and Hold
Warren Buffett’s advice to stick with quality stocks long-term remains a powerful truth, even after market shocks.
Warren Buffett's main piece of advice is refreshingly simple: buy solid companies and hold them through market storms. This isn’t just fluff; Berkshire Hathaway’s staggering 5.5 million percent gain since 1964 proves it works over decades. For South African investors, the lesson is transferable. Rather than trying to time USD/ZAR moves or jump out when volatility spikes, focus on companies with strong fundamentals on the JSE. Think FirstRand or Naspers, which can weather currency swings and economic ups and downs. Market timing often leads to missing the best days—costly mistakes that few recover from. That said, if South Africa hits deeper political or economic turmoil, even the best stocks can stumble, so don’t ignore risk. Patience here pays off more often than fear. this is just our opinion and not financial advice
Buy and hold quality JSE counters like FirstRand and Naspers for steady exposure, while watching USD/ZAR closely for potential entry points in rand-hedged assets.
- FirstRand
- Naspers
- USD/ZAR
- South African political instability
- Unforeseen currency depreciation
7/10
Warren Buffett advises anxious investors to invest in good companies and hold them for the long term, particularly through S&P 500 index funds. Historical data supports this strategy, showing that investors who stayed fully invested—even during major market crashes—ultimately made money, while those who tried to time the market or missed the best trading days significantly underperformed.
Our take is based on reporting first published by The Motley Fool.