Key Metrics
16.02
Heat Index-
Impact LevelMedium
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Scope LevelNational
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Last Update2025-11-10
Key Impacts
Positive Impacts (2)
Event Overview
The philanthropic actions of a prominent business leader highlight the intersection of wealth, legacy, and charitable giving. The event underscores the significant influence of private donations on global philanthropy and the transition in leadership within a major corporation.
Collect Records
Warren Buffett to Step Down and Donate $1.3 Billion
Warren Buffett, the 95-year-old CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, announced he is stepping down at the end of the year. He will stop writing the company's annual letters and speaking at its meetings. Additionally, he disclosed a donation of over $1.3 billion to four family foundations.
Warren Buffett donates record $6 billion Berkshire shares
On Friday, Warren Buffett donated $6 billion worth of Berkshire Hathaway stock to five charities: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation. This donation, made through a transfer of approximately 12.36 million Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares, marks Buffett’s largest annual contribution since he began his philanthropy nearly two decades ago. The specific breakdown of donations includes 9.43 million shares to the Gates Foundation; 943,384 shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation; and 660,366 shares each to the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation. Buffett’s total contributions to these charities now exceed $60 billion. After this donation, he still owns 13.8% of Berkshire Hathaway. At 94, Buffett's net worth before Friday's donation was $152 billion, according to Forbes, making him the fifth-richest person globally. He began his charitable donations in 2006, and in 2023 changed his will to leave 99.5% of his remaining fortune to a charitable trust controlled by his children after his death.