Warren Buffett donates Thanksgiving millions, praises USA – Fox Business

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Warren Buffett gave a total of 2.4 million Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares to family-related nonprofit organizations.

The “Oracle of Omaha” was presented on Tuesday to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and the NoVo Foundation, Berkshire Hathaway announced in a press release. Their total value was around $870 million.

He donated after converting 1,600 Class A shares.

Warren Buffett, chairman and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., speaks during an interview with Bloomberg Television in New York, U.S., on Wednesday, August 30, 2017. Buffett said the markets’ rally in recent years has made it… (Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The gifted shares “supplement certain of my lifetime commitments that I made in 2006 and that will remain in place until my death (I feel good at 93, but am fully aware that I am playing in extra innings),” Buffett said in one accompanying statement. A year ago, he took a similar Thanksgiving action.

tickerSecurityLastChangeChange %
BRK.ABERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC.549,435.00+1,809.97+0.33%
BRK.BBERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC.361.70+0.78back

According to Berkshire Hathaway, the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation received more than half – 1.5 million of the 2.4 million shares. The other three received gifts of 300,000 each.

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Buffett’s handover of these shares to the family foundations came about five months after the 93-year-old Berkshire Hathaway CEO previously sold over 3.2 million Class B shares to the four nonprofits and 10.45 million to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation had sent.

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He said his three adult children have been appointed “to be the executors of my current will as well as the appointed trustees of the charitable trust which, under the terms of the will, will receive more than 99% of my assets,” according to the will release.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Forbes estimated Buffett had a personal fortune of $120.6 billion.

Warren Buffett attends the world premiere of “Becoming Warren Buffett” at the Museum of Modern Art on January 19, 2017 in New York City. (J Kempin/Getty Images/Getty Images)

The billionaire, who celebrated his last birthday in August, later praised America in his statement to shareholders.

“My children and their father share the belief that dynastic wealth, although legal and common in much of the world, including the United States, is undesirable. Furthermore, we have had many opportunities to observe that wealth, undesirable, makes you either wise or evil. We also agree that capitalism – whatever its weaknesses, including the vast disparities in wealth and political influence that it somewhat capriciously bestows on its citizens – has worked wonders and continues to work wonders. The United States is Exhibit A of this belief, and the four of us are fortunate to have overcome very great odds when we were born in the United States,” Buffett said.

Warren Buffett, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images / Getty Images)

He also expressed confidence in Greg Abel, chosen after him as CEO, and in Berkshire Hathaway’s board, once describing the conglomerate as “built to last.” Buffett has led the company for decades.

Another billionaire – Jeff Bezos – also took part in philanthropic activities this week.

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The Amazon founder announced Tuesday that his Bezos Day 1 Families Fund would distribute $117.55 million in grants to 38 organizations working to alleviate homelessness. According to the Bezos Day One Fund, this fund has provided approximately $691.1 million through over 200 grants in six years.