Legendary investor Warren Buffet has given the public a glimpse into his will and revealed how he plans to use his $130 billion fortune to help those in need.
The chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, 93, said that after his death, nearly all of his vast wealth will be placed in a charitable trust, to be managed by his daughter and two sons.
Buffet also made it clear that his donations to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation would end.
“The Gates Foundation will have no money after my death,” Buffet said The Wall Street Journal.
Legendary investor Warren Buffet, 93, has given the public a glimpse into his will, revealing how he plans to use his $130 billion fortune to help those in need
The active philanthropist has already sold more than half of his shares in Berkshire Hathway, a multinational holding company he took control of in 1965.
On Friday morning, Buffett made his latest round of charitable donations, leaving him with nearly $130 billion in company stock.
To donate money to the fund, Buffett’s three children must be in complete agreement about the causes they want to sponsor.
The chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway said that after his death, nearly all of his immense fortune will be put into a charitable trust, to be managed by his daughter and two sons; Pictured (far left) daughter Susan, (center right) son Howard, (far right) son Peter
However, the billionaire hasn’t dictated exactly how his children should handle the money, offering them little more than his philosophy of giving back.
“It should be used to help those people who weren’t as fortunate as we were,” said Buffet, who lives in Omaha, Nebraska.
“There’s eight billion people in the world, and me and my kids, we’ve been in the luckiest 100th of 1 percent or something like that. There are many ways to help people.’
To donate money to the fund, Buffett’s three children must be in complete agreement about the causes they want to sponsor.
Buffett has amended his will several times, but came up with the current version after seeing how his children had grown up over the years.
In 2006, Buffet, who had previously claimed he would maintain philanthropy until his death, changed his mind and announced his desire to give.
He pledged to make annual donations to the Gates Foundation, as well as four foundations related to his family.
What he would do with his immense fortune after his death remained a mystery at the time.
But Buffett on launching the charity for his children, rather than continuing to contribute to the five foundations after his death.
The Nebraska billionaire has changed his will several times, but he told the newspaper log that he came up with the current version after “watching his children mature over the years.”
Buffett’s daughter Susie is the oldest of the couple at 71. Like her father, she lives in Omaha, where she is president of the Sherwood Foundation, an organization that advocates for children’s education and social justice.
Susie is also president of the Susan Thompson Buffet Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting reproductive rights and providing scholarships.
Howie Buffet, 69, lives in Illinois, where he is a farmer and directs the Howard G. Buffet Foundation, which focuses on food security, conflict resolution and reducing human trafficking.
Howie, along with his sister, serves on Berkshire’s board of directors.
“I feel very, very good about the values of my three children, and I have 100 percent confidence in the way they will run things,” Buffet said proudly.
Peter Buffet, the youngest at 66, is a composer living near Kingston, New York. Together with his wife, Jennifer Buffet, he runs the NoVo Foundation, which has done work with indigenous communities.
“I feel very, very good about the values of my three children and I have 100 percent confidence in the way they approach things,” Buffet said proudly.
He added that after his death, his children will clearly have an advantage over him in determining how best to spend his fortune.
“I like to think I can think outside the box, but I’m not sure I can think outside the box when it’s six feet under the surface and do better than three people on the surface who I completely trust. ‘