Warren Buffett Gives His Kids $600M Worth of Stock On His Birthday
OMAHA, NEBRASKA- Warren Buffet is celebrating his birthday, not by recieving his own presents, but by giving his own children $600 million worth of his company’s stock. Buffet’s generous gifts to his three children will be used for their charitable foundations.
NBC News reports, Buffet announced the gifts in a letter, that was made public on Thursday, saying he is rewarding his children for the way that they have run their foundations.
These contributions, along with previous gifts, add up to about $2.1 billion in stock over time for each of his children. Buffet promised to give roughly $1.5 billion dollars of Class B Berkshire Hathaway stock to each of his children’s foundations in 2006. This was part of a plan to give a bulk of his fortune to charity.
The largest share of Buffet’s $44.7 billion fortune will go to The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Another large donation will be given to the Susan Thompson Buffet Foundation, which he had created with his first wife.
Buffet says that he has decided to increase the amount his children will recieve because of how much progress they have made with each of their foundations.
“I’m very pleased about how all three of them have handled the contributions in the last six years,” Buffett told The Associated Press.
Washington Post reports that this decision was not based on for concern for Buffet’s health. Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO and chairman has been undergoing radiation treatment for prostate cancer this summer, but he says that his doctors do not believe that the disease is life-threatening. He says that he is feeling just fine.
Each of Buffet’s three children have chose different focuses for their foundations based on their own specific interests.
Howard Buffett, 57, is helping farmers in impoverished nations produce more to help end world hunger. Susie Buffett, 59, is strengthening early childhood education and constantly trying to find ways to reduce teen pregnancy. Peter Buffett, 54, wants to empower women and girls worldwide through education, collaboration and economic development to end violence against women.
All of which are more than worthy of such a donation.
