Microsoft founder Bill Gates has been vocal about how he plans to redistribute his wealth. From already donating billions and reducing his net worth, to claiming his children will not have access to his entire fortune. Gates now says he will give away almost all of his fortune to philanthropic efforts.
Bill Gates has a net worth of over $103 billion according to Forbes, and he says the majority will be giving to his charitable endeavors.
Participating in a Reddit Ask Me Anything, Gates was confronted on this subject. Someone asked if Gates is living a contradictory life because he claims to be a humanitarian, but accumulates the “most scarce resource-land”
While Bill Gates owns multiple homes around the world, the question was actually referencing the 275,000 acres of farmland Gates owns in the United States. This is known because prolific landowners in the U.S. are tracked by Land Report 100.
In response to the question, Gates confirmed he will give away most the land and indeed most of his remaining wealth:
“I own less than 1/4000 of the farmland in the US. I have invested in these farms to make them more productive and create more jobs. There isn’t some grand scheme involved – in fact, all these decisions are made by a professional investment team.”
“Everything I own will be sold as money moves into the Foundation.” He adds, “In the meantime, my investment group tries to invest in productive assets including farmland although that is less than 4% of the total.”
Giving it Away
Over the years, Gates has put billions of dollars into the Gates Foundations, making it one of the most important charitable groups in the world. For Bill Gates and his now ex-wife Melinda (div. 2021), the Gates Foundation was a serious endeavor.
It battles against global diseases, education gaps, and lack of sanitation in developing countries. Together, Bill and Melinda Gates have donated $39 billion to the foundation since it started in 1994, as well as pledging to other charities. During that time, Gates has also continued to build his wealth, which has doubled since 2010.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has also said he will give the majority of his $120+ billion fortune to charity.
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