Warren Buffett stops yearly donation to Gates Foundation over Epstein link: 'Of course, morality is unpredicted but my remaining shares will be…'

Warren Buffett, in a major decision, stopped giving donations to the Gates Foundation over Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates’ links to dead sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Buffett was a founding trustee of the Gates Foundation and he started “The Giving Pledge” with Bill Gates and his then-wife Melinda French Gates to encourage billionaires to donate a considerable portion of their wealth. Buffett resigned from the Foundation’s board in 2021, but has continued to donate billions annually to the charity. But this year, he omitted the Gates Foundation as he waits to see the conclusion of a review by outside attorneys hired by the charity that is looking into ties between the foundation and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the Wall Street Journal reported.“Of course, mortality is unpredictable,” said Buffett. “But my remaining shares will be donated to the four foundations one way or the other by 31 December, 2034.”Berkshire Hathaway is worth $1.1 trillion, and Buffett owns about 30% of the stock. Much of Buffett’s giving in past years had been directed to the Gates Foundation. In 2022, the Gates Foundation said Buffett’s donations to that point had totaled $36 billion, and he continued to contribute billions of dollars worth of Berkshire stock every year up until this year.

‘No longer speaking with Gates’

The revelation that Bill Gates shared a close relationship with Epstein strained the ties between Gates and Buffett. Buffett told CNBC earlier this year that he is no longer speaking with Gates, although Buffett said he didn’t regret his past donations.“I wish that certain things hadn’t happened,” Buffett, said in the March interview. But “it isn’t like they’re stealing money for themselves.”Gates testified before a House committee last month that he had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. Earlier he reportedly apologized to Foundation staff for his ties to Epstein, calling his relationship with Epstein “a huge mistake,” but has strongly denied any allegations of personal wrongdoing.