Warren Buffett has recently updated plans for his substantial fortune following his death.
At 93, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway revealed to the Wall Street Journal that he has revised his will and will no longer direct donations to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation after his passing. Instead, his wealth will be placed in a new charitable trust managed by his three children.
“The Gates Foundation has no money coming after my death,” Buffett stated.
Buffett explained that he has revised his will multiple times, with the latest changes reflecting his trust in his children’s values and their ability to distribute his wealth. Each of Buffett’s children runs their own philanthropic organizations.
“I feel very, very good about the values of my three children, and I have 100% trust in how they will carry things out,” Buffett expressed.
Previously, Buffett had designated over 99% of his estate for philanthropic purposes, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and four family-related charities: the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, Sherwood Foundation, Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and NoVo Foundation.
Recently, Buffett plans to continue his lifetime donations to the Gates Foundation. Berkshire Hathaway announced on Friday that Buffett is converting approximately 9,000 Class A shares into over 13 million Class B shares. About 9.3 million of these shares will be allocated to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, with the remainder distributed among the four Buffett family charities.
“Warren Buffett has been exceedingly generous to the Gates Foundation through more than 18 years of contributions and advice,” said Mark Suzman, the foundation’s chief executive, in a statement to CNN. “We are deeply grateful for his most recent gift and contributions totaling approximately $43 billion to our work.”
Last year, Buffett donated about $870 million to the four family-run charities, and around $750 million in 2022.
Following these newly announced donations, Buffett retains 207,963 Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares and 2,586 Class B shares, valued at roughly $128 billion.
