If Warren Buffett had not donated $111 billion worth of stock in the last 16 years, he would be richer than Musk today.
Buffett owned nearly 475,000 Berkshire “A” shares in 2006, when he pledged to donate 99% of his fortune to good causes. Since then, he has nearly halved his holdings to about 239,000 shares, which has reduced the value of his stake in Berkshire to $112 billion.
The investor’s net worth has soared by more than $4 billion (3.6 billion euros) this year, as growing fears of inflation and rising interest rates have fueled a 3% rise in shares. from Berkshire.
By contrast, Musk’s fortune has plunged by $50 billion this month, reflecting a painful sell-off in tech stocks that has slashed Tesla’s share price by 29%.
Forbes estimates that Musk has donated less than 1% of his wealth to charity, so his philanthropy has not materially eroded his net worth.
However, Buffett’s donations may have boosted Berkshire’s share price, meaning the investor’s fortune could be lower today without his generosity in recent years.
The Berkshire leader is the only one of the world’s 10 richest people whose net worth has grown this year. His fellow “centimillionaires” have seen almost 150,000 million dollars (about 135,000 million euros) of their combined fortunes disappear in a matter of weeks.
Buffett’s philanthropy has taken a toll on his wealth, costing him the title of the world’s richest man. Yet his decades of careful investing continue to pay off, as investors return to Berkshire for safety, and his collection of stocks and businesses generate plenty of money for him to give away.
Source: Ambito
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