Bill Gates to leave less than one per cent of his wealth to his children
By Madhurima Haque|
Bill Gates has revealed that he will be leaving less than one per cent of his wealth to his children in his inheritance.
Speaking on the Figuring Out with Raj Shamani podcast, he opened up about the decision.
Watch the video above
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"Everybody gets to decide on that," he said, "In my case, my kids got a great upbringing and education but less than one per cent of the total wealth."
The Microsoft founder reasoned, "Because I decided it wouldn't be a favour to them. You know, it's not a dynasty.
"I'm not asking them to run Microsoft. I want to give them a chance to have their own earnings and success, be significant and not overshadowed by the incredible luck and good fortune I had."
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According to Forbes, the 69-year-old's net worth is estimated to be $US108 billion (approx. $181 billion) as of this year, meaning the amount left to each of his children would be around $1.8 billion.
When asked whether his children – Jennifer, 28, Rory, 25, and Phoebe, 22 – had any objection to the amount of their inheritance, he explained how he circumvented that.
"You don't want your kids to ever be confused about your support for them and your love for them. So I do think explaining, early on, your philosophy that you're gonna treat them all equally and that you're gonna give them incredible opportunities, but that the highest calling for these resources is to go back to the neediest through the foundation."
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He says that many children of wealthy parents have chosen to give back more.
"I've seen cases where kids actually tell their parents to be more philanthropic. You know, I think the younger generation sometimes actually is pushing against this idea of of the wealth just being passed down mostly."
Bill shares his three children with ex-wife Melinda French Gates whom he divorced in 2021.
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Jennifer is the oldest of the Gates children and is a pediatrician, while her husband, Nayel Nassar, is a famed equestrian from Egypt. They share two children.
Rory is passionate about education, having graduating from the University of Chicago in June 2022 after earning a double major and a master's in four years. According to LinkedIn, he is working toward his PhD at the Institute of World Politics and is an analyst for the Afghanistan War Commission
Phoebe is a Stanford graduate with a degree in human biology and is known for being a female rights activist.
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