OMAHA, Neb. (Diya TV) — Warren Buffett has left the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation out of his annual charitable stock donations for the first time in years. Instead, the billionaire investor directed all of this year’s Berkshire Hathaway stock gifts to four foundations linked to his family.
Berkshire Hathaway announced that Buffett, 95, will donate 9 million Class B shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation. He will also give 1 million Class B shares each to the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation.
The decision marks a major change in Buffett’s long-running charitable giving plan. For nearly two decades, the Gates Foundation received the largest share of his yearly Berkshire Hathaway stock donations. Since 2006, Buffett has donated more than $47 billion worth of Berkshire shares to the foundation created by Bill Gates and his former wife, Melinda French Gates.
This year, however, the Gates Foundation did not receive any shares.
Buffett also shared an update about his long-term plans for his remaining Berkshire Hathaway stock. He said he expects to give away all of his shares within about eight years.
“My goal is to dispose of all of my Berkshire shares within about eight years,” Buffett said in a statement. He also noted that his children are getting older. Therefore, he hopes they can complete the distribution of his remaining shares by Dec. 31, 2034.
His latest move comes after a report by The Wall Street Journal said Buffett delayed his usual donation to the Gates Foundation. According to the report, Buffett is waiting for the outcome of a review involving the foundation’s past ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Neither Buffett nor Berkshire Hathaway commented further on the reported review.
Earlier this year, Buffett addressed his relationship with Bill Gates during an interview with CNBC’s Becky Quick. He said he had not spoken with Gates since the issue became public.
Buffett also reflected on their long friendship. He said they had shared many great moments over the years. However, he added that it did not make sense to have many conversations until the matter became clear.
The decision represents a significant departure from Buffett’s charitable pledge made in 2006. At that time, he wrote to Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates that he was making an “irrevocable” commitment to donate Berkshire Hathaway shares to their foundation every year during his lifetime. The pledge depended on at least one of them remaining actively involved with the organization.
For many years, Buffett honored that commitment. His annual donations made him one of the largest contributors to the Gates Foundation. Those gifts helped support global programs focused on public health, education, and economic opportunity.
Despite this year’s omission, the Gates Foundation thanked Buffett for his decades of support.
“The Gates Foundation is grateful to Warren Buffett for his decades of support for our work,” the organization said in a statement to CNBC.
The foundation added that Buffett’s donations, which totaled more than $47 billion, helped expand its mission to improve health and opportunity for people around the world.
In addition, the foundation said it remains financially strong. It also pointed to Bill Gates’ commitment to contribute $200 billion in support of its work through 2045.
Meanwhile, Buffett’s family foundations will receive the full value of this year’s Berkshire Hathaway stock gifts. These organizations have supported a wide range of charitable causes for many years. Their work includes education, agriculture, community development, women’s issues, and social programs.
Buffett has consistently ranked among the world’s most generous philanthropists. Over the years, he has pledged to give away nearly all of his wealth. Even so, this year’s donation plan highlights a notable shift in how he plans to distribute that wealth going forward.
