Warren Buffett on Hillary Clinton 2016: 'She will run and win the White House'

Buffett backed Clinton in 2008 and he's now betting she'll win the White House in 2016

Warren Buffett (Getty)

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett isn't one to bet on the wrong horse. And his astute picks have made him one the richest men in the world.

And now the Oracle of Omaha is betting on Hillary Clinton winning the 2016 US presidential election, although she is yet to make a formal announcement confirming her candidacy.

Speaking at event promoting female leadership in California, he added: "Hillary is going to win....I would bet money on that, and I don't do that easily."

The former first lady has spent much of this year promoting her new memoir, Hard Choices, and has so far refused to discuss her political future in detail. She has, however, hinted she'll announce her decision after New Year's Day.

Buffett backed Clinton when she ran in 2008 and later offered his support for President Barack Obama. He has described his political views as generally liberal and argued in favour of increasing taxes for the wealthiest Americans, but later insisted he is not a "card-carrying" Democrat etiher.

Discussing Clinton's Republican rivals for 2016, the Berkshire Hathaway chief executive said Mitt Romney's potential return to front-line politics is becoming "more interesting".

The former Governor of Massachusetts ran for president in 2012 but was defeated by incumbent Obama. He also ran for president in 2008, but lost the nomination to Arizona Senator John McCain.

Earlier this week, McCain told Reuters "a lot of people who invested time in him" probably want him to reconsider the possibility of running for a third time. He said Romney "checks the box" for likeability in the GOP and described him as "a nice human being".

Other names being touted as possible candidates for the Republican party include New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Florida governor Marco Rubio as well as Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ted Cruz of Texas.