WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Warren Buffett has made another massive philanthropic move, donating roughly $6 billion in Berkshire Hathaway stock to five charitable organizations on Friday.
The 94-year-old billionaire transferred about 12.36 million Class B shares, marking his largest annual donation since he began giving away his wealth nearly two decades ago.
The bulk of this year's gift approximately 9.4 million shares worth $4.6 billion will go to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Buffett also allocated nearly 943,000 shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named for his late first wife, and around 660,000 shares each to the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation, all led by his children.
Buffett's net worth stood at $152 billion before Friday's donation, making him the fifth-richest person globally, according to Forbes. The donation is expected to move him to sixth place. Despite these annual gifts, Buffett still holds a 13.8 percent stake in Berkshire and has reiterated that he does not intend to sell any shares apart from those dedicated to philanthropy.
Buffett began his formal giving pledge in 2006 and last year revised his will to direct 99.5 percent of his remaining wealth to a charitable trust overseen by his children. They will have a decade after his passing to distribute the funds unanimously.
Reflecting on Berkshire's growth, Buffett credited a 'very long runway, simple and generally sound decisions, the American tailwind, and compounding effects,' rather than any singular extraordinary event. His lifetime donations now total over $60 billion, a testament to one of the largest philanthropic commitments in history.
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