&w=3840&q=100)
Warren Buffett to donate $6 billion in Berkshire shares to charities
About 9.43 million Class B shares will be given to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, according to a statement on Saturday
Bloomberg
Warren Buffett will donate about $6 billion of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shares to five foundations as part of a pledge he made nearly two decades ago.
About 9.43 million Class B shares will be given to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, according to a statement on Saturday. Another 2.92 million shares will be donated to his children's foundations — Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and NoVo Foundation — as well as the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named after the billionaire's late wife.
The 94-year-old started the Giving Pledge in 2010 alongside friends Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates with the goal of donating Buffett's fortune either in his lifetime or at his death. Four years earlier, he had started making massive donations to the Gates's foundation, as well as foundations tied to his children.
'The mathematics of the lifetime commitments to the five foundations are interesting,' Buffett said. 'The five foundations have received Berkshire B shares that had a value when received of about $60 billion, substantially more than my entire net worth in 2006.'
Buffett earlier this year announced he would step down as chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway by the end of 2025, leaving the role to his long-time second-in-command Greg Abel. Buffett said he would not sell a single share of Berkshire Hathaway, but would give them away gradually.
Buffett's stake in Berkshire now consists of 198,117 Class A shares and 1,144 Class B shares.
'I have no debts and my remaining A shares are worth about $145 billion, well over 99 per cent of my net worth,' Buffett said. 'My will provides that about 99.5 per cent of my estate is destined for philanthropic usage.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
Goldman ICBC Wealth JV CEO Leaves Amid Growth Pains, Competition
(Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s top executive at its wealth venture with China's biggest bank has resigned, people familiar with the matter said, as foreign firms struggle to gain a foothold in the country's asset management market amid deepening economic strains. Alex Wang, chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs ICBC Wealth Management, is leaving after almost 15 years at Goldman's asset management affiliate in China, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter isn't public. He is in discussions to join Nomura Holdings Inc. with a similar title to run its securities business, the people said, asking not to be identified. Goldman will replace Wang with Zhang Yumeng, who took up a job as managing director at investment research firm Morningstar Inc. in January, one of the people said. He was formerly head of China at Legal & General Group, having also worked at Ping An Asset Management and Mercer International. Goldman Sachs' spokeswoman in Hong Kong declined to comment. Wang, who was also previously head of private wealth management in China onshore at Gao Hua Securities Co., didn't respond to requests for comment. Zhang and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. couldn't be reached for comment outside business hours. Wang's departure comes three years after Goldman's 51%-owned venture was allowed to roll out wealth management services in 2022. Although the tie-up with ICBC will aid product distribution on the mainland, it remains unclear how much it will overlap or compete with the Chinese lender's own wealth management unit, one of the people said. Global firms have launched wholly-owned fund management units in China, but scaling up has proved difficult amid a sluggish stock market and intense competition from powerful domestic players that offer tailored, lower-cost products. Western firms may find it challenging to match the deep-rooted networks and regulatory rapport that the local incumbents have enjoyed, while a regulatory push to lower management fees has further squeezed margins. New York-based Goldman's China wealth push was built on expectations of rising demand from a growing affluent class. It previously estimated Chinese households will have 450 trillion yuan ($63 trillion) in investable assets by 2030, with around 60% flowing into non-deposit products such as securities, mutual funds, and bank wealth management, according to a 2021 announcement when it established the venture with ICBC. But demand has waned as consumers hoard cash amid a prolonged property slump and mounting US–China tensions, sharply curbing investment appetite. Meanwhile, Nomura has scaled back its original focus on China wealth, cutting staffing by about two-thirds in the business over the past two years to prioritize an expansion in brokerage and asset management in the world's second largest economy, people familiar said earlier. The Tokyo-based firm has been seeking a new chief executive officer for its securities business in China for months as its joint venture faces pressure to revive its performance after posting losses every year since it was formed in 2019. While it was confident that its expertise of catering to rich Japanese would help give it an edge in China, its wealth business push has teetered under President Xi Jinping's 'common prosperity' drive, a slowing economy and stiff competition. Rival UBS Group AG last year also postponed plans to build its own mutual fund business in China due to the large capital commitment and a dim profit outlook, people familiar with the matter have said. The bank had been contemplating a stand-alone fund platform after China lifted foreign ownership restrictions in 2020. More stories like this are available on
Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
US Senate unveils revised Trump tax draft with plans to vote soon: Key details here
Senate Republicans have announced a revised $4.2 trillion tax cut package, moving closer to a vote as they aim to meet US President Donald Trump's July 4 deadline. The new draft reflects compromises designed to bridge differences within the Senate GOP, particularly regarding social safety programs such as Medicaid and how rapidly to phase out of renewable energy tax credits enacted under the Biden administration, according to a Bloomberg report. Increased SALT deduction: A tentative deal with House Republicans to raise the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 for five years before snapping back to the $10,000 level. The new cap applies to 2025 and rises 1% in subsequent years. Rural Hospital Fund: To appease moderate Republicans concerned about Medicaid cuts, the bill proposes a new $25 billion rural hospital fund aimed at helping some Medicaid providers avoid cuts. Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine, however, had demanded a $100 billion fund. Delayed Medicaid provider tax cap: A critical win for the Moderate Republicans is the delay of a new 3.5% cap on state Medicaid provider taxes. This cap, which impacts how states can boost their federal Medicaid reimbursement rates, will take effect in 2032 instead of 2031. Extended Hydrogen production tax credit: In the new bill, the phase-out of a tax credit for hydrogen production has been extended from 2025 to 2028 for projects that begin construction before that year. Republicans plan to start voting on the tax bill on Saturday with final votes coming as soon as early Sunday. Party leaders plan to bring House members back to Washington early next week for what they hope will be final approval of the measure in time for Trump's Independence Day deadline. However, it remains uncertain whether the 50 Senate Republicans required to pass the bill are all on board. The bill can be further altered on the Senate floor to secure the votes if needed. The House could also make more changes if Speaker Mike Johnson has trouble corralling votes for the measure. The measure would avert a US payment default as soon as August by raising the debt ceiling by $5 trillion, the news agency said.
Economic Times
3 hours ago
- Economic Times
$6 billion donation: Warren Buffett makes his biggest annual charitable gift
Warren Buffett has made his largest annual donation to date, giving away $6 billion worth of Berkshire Hathaway stock to a mix of philanthropic organizations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and four foundations tied to his family. ADVERTISEMENT The donation, disclosed on Friday, was executed through the transfer of approximately 12.36 million Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway, continuing a long-standing tradition that began nearly two decades ago. The bulk of the shares, over 9.4 million, were directed to the Gates Foundation. Additional allocations included nearly 943,000 shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, and 660,000 shares each to three organizations run by his children: the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation. This latest giving round raises Buffett's total charitable contributions over the years to more than $60 billion. Even after this sizable transfer, Buffett retains about 13.8% ownership in Berkshire Hathaway, according to publicly reported data. Prior to the donation, his net worth stood at approximately $152 billion, placing him fifth on Forbes' global billionaire this year's donation exceeding the $5.3 billion he gave in June 2023, Buffett is expected to fall slightly in the a public note accompanying the donation, Buffett reiterated that he has no intention of selling any of his Berkshire shares. ADVERTISEMENT The 94-year-old investor and philanthropist began systematically giving away his wealth in 2006 and made changes to his estate plan last year, allocating 99.5% of his remaining wealth to a charitable trust to be overseen by his children after his passing. His three children—Susie, Howard, and Peter Buffett—will jointly manage the distribution of the trust's assets, with decisions to be made unanimously over the course of a decade. At present, Susie Buffett is 71, Howard Buffett is 70, and Peter Buffett is 67. ADVERTISEMENT The foundations receiving Buffett's donations each focus on distinct social causes. The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named after his late first wife, supports reproductive health initiatives. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation works on global hunger, conflict mitigation, and anti-trafficking Sherwood Foundation emphasizes early childhood education and nonprofit work in Nebraska, while the NoVo Foundation focuses on uplifting marginalized girls, women, and indigenous communities. ADVERTISEMENT Buffett has previously stated that donations to the Gates Foundation will cease upon his death. Meanwhile, Berkshire Hathaway—valued at $1.05 trillion—continues to operate a vast portfolio of companies and public equity holdings, including stakes in Apple, American Express, Geico, and BNSF Railway. Also read: Rs 1 lakh crore selloff tsunami threatens Nifty rally as promoters, strategic investors exit (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times) ADVERTISEMENT (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)
