• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
SuccessWarren Buffett

Warren Buffett wants his entire $96 billion fortune spent within 10 years of his death. Every kid on the planet might get a cut

By
Chloe Berger
Chloe Berger
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chloe Berger
Chloe Berger
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 27, 2022, 8:36 AM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

What will happen with Warren Buffett’s billions when he dies? Some of it might go to every kid on the planet.

So reports the Wall Street Journal in a recent investigation of the future of Buffett’s fortune, which is worth $96.8 billion at the time of this article’s publication. In 2006, the Berkshire Hathaway CEO pledged to give away 85% of his stock in the company to charity, designating the majority of it to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Four years later, he vowed to redistribute 99% of his wealth to philanthropy during or after his lifetime.

Of Buffett’s $90 billion Berkshire stake, $56 billion will go to the Gates Foundation and $17.4 billion to four family charities, leaving an uncommitted $18.7 billion—all numbers the Journal says could climb if Berkshire shares continue to perform the way they have been. He reportedly wants his billions spent within 10 years of his death.

Gates Foundation staffers have been banking on receiving the full amount of both Buffett’s pledged shares and remaining unpledged shares, the Journal reported, having spent years figuring out where to put the money since some Gates Foundation grant recipients were already maxed out. 

One proposed solution was to create a world children’s savings bank. The exact amount allocated to each child wasn’t disclosed, but a former Gates Foundation employee told the Journal that each child would receive thousands of dollars that “sit on a shelf, like a battle plan” for baby beneficiaries. 

But Buffett, who turns 92 this year, hasn’t yet disclosed the nitty-gritty of how his wealth will be split after his death; estate planning experts told the Journal his pledge letter was a bit ambiguous. The investigation found that Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, a family charity that supports abortion rights, has been hiring staff and planning for a “massive influx of money” as high as $100 billion—meaning it may inherit some of the windfall the Gates Foundation has been anticipating.

Officials from the Gates Foundation and the Buffett Foundation didn’t respond to Fortune’s requests for comment, and Buffett told the Journal there were inaccuracies in its reporting. But, if the Gates Foundation does receive enough money to distribute a cut to every child, it would help even the world’s socioeconomic playing field and possibly provide parents with the financial safety net they need to have kids in today’s economy.

As the cost of living soars, paying for one’s own expenses is becoming more and more unaffordable, let alone those for another human being. Finances are partly why the percentage of U.S. non-parents ages 18 to 49 who say it’s not likely or not at all likely that they will have kids has increased by 7% since 2018 to 44% in 2022, per the Pew Research Center. The cost of raising a child in the U.S. sets parents back more than $280,000 on average.

It’s contributing to the birth rate decline in the US that has been ongoing for over a decade, as more debt-saddled and recession-afflicted millennials delay having kids until they get their finances in order. The drop in births is a worldwide trend among more developed nations; in China, for example, the birth rate fell for the fifth year in a row in 2021.

As wealth inequality and the pay gap widened during the pandemic, a growing number of billionaires have been thinking of more inventive ways to allocate their assets. That includes the idea of a more equitable distribution of money, beginning with kids. It’s even reaching the Senate—the Democrat-backed American Opportunity Accounts Act, a proposal that addresses the racial wealth divide by introducing $1,000 baby bonds for all newborns in the U.S. 

If Gates staffers carry through with such plans for a worldwide children’s bank, Buffett’s billions could have the same effect across the globe.

Sign up for the Fortune Features email list so you don’t miss our biggest features, exclusive interviews, and investigations.

About the Author
By Chloe Berger
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Success

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Success

Nike’s earning numbers exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. But CEO Elliott Hill’s next test is the World Cup
RetailNike
Nike’s earning numbers exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. But CEO Elliott Hill’s next test is the World Cup
By Mia OsmonbekovJune 30, 2026
8 hours ago
Young worker at desk
SuccessGen Z
Remote-first fintech giant Revolut is making the office compulsory for new Gen Z grads—and they’ll earn flexibility like their peers after one year
By Emma BurleighJune 30, 2026
13 hours ago
Henry Kravis
SuccessCareers
KKR cofounder once impressed Roy Disney with a habit most analysts skipped—it turned a 1-hour meeting into all-day mentorship: ‘I thought I’d died and gone to heaven’
By Preston ForeJune 30, 2026
13 hours ago
Bill Gates (left) and Warren Buffett
SuccessWarren Buffett
Warren Buffett breaks from a ‘lifetime’ pledge to the Gates Foundation as the Epstein fallout deepens
By Sydney LakeJune 30, 2026
14 hours ago
kean
PoliticsElections
New Jersey Republican to reappear in Congress after unexplained 4-month absence
By Mike Catalini and The Associated PressJune 30, 2026
16 hours ago
swiss
EuropeHeat
It’s so hot in Switzerland that yodelers are standing in fountains
By Jez Fielder and The Associated PressJune 30, 2026
16 hours ago

Most Popular

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
6 days ago
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
2 days ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
4 days ago
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
AI
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
By Catherina GioinoJune 29, 2026
1 day ago
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
Environment
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
By Catherina GioinoJune 28, 2026
3 days ago
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
Commentary
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
By Marc AndersenJune 30, 2026
17 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.