How much did billionaires really give to charity in 2018?
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The Billionaire Philanthropists in 2018
Being a billionaire doesn't mean spending all your money on super-yachts, designer clothes, and overpriced bottles of champagne. The incredibly wealthy like to give to good causes, and many possess a keen social conscience. But are they as charitable as we might think? We take a closer look at how much money the world's richest people donated in 2018 as a percentage of their entire net wealth.
Alice Walton – 0.27%
Walton is the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. Her net worth in 2018 was $44.9 billion (£34.5bn), according to Forbes. In 2018, she gifted $120 million (£91.9m) to the University of Arkansas, which is 0.27% of her wealth. However, Walton also runs the Walton Family Foundation, which supports education, economic development, and the environment, and through this is well known as a philanthropist.
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Mark Zuckerberg – 0.35%
In 2018 Zuckerberg’s net worth was calculated at $61 billion (£46.8bn). The Philanthropy 50, in turn, says that he gave just over $213.5 million (£163.5m) to charity in that year. Despite that seeming like a considerable amount, this is just 0.35% of the Facebook founder's amassed net worth.
Steve Ballmer – 0.70%
Ballmer is the former CEO of Microsoft and current owner of the LA Clippers basketball team. As of October last year, his net worth was estimated at $42.3 billion (£32.5 billion) by Forbes. Ballmer gave $295 million (£225.1 million) to good causes in 2018, according to Philanthropy 50, which means that he passed on 0.70% of his amassed fortune.
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Françoise Bettencourt Meyers – 1%
L’Oréal heiress Meyers is the world’s wealthiest woman, and was worth $49.3 billion (£37.6bn) in 2018 according to Forbes. She gave away $500 million (£382m) of it – 1% – to good causes last year through the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation.
Jeff Bezos – 1.25%
The net worth of the founder of Amazon was $160 billion (£122.8bn) last year, according to Forbes. Of this, the mogul gave $2 billion (£1.53bn) to charitable causes, according to the Philanthropy 50 list, but this totals just 1.25% of Bezos' net worth.
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Leonard Blavatnik – 1.6%
The Soviet-born, British-American investor and businessman Sir Leonard ‘Len’ Blavatnik was estimated as having a net worth of $17.9 billion (£13.7bn) last year, according to Forbes. Of this, he donated $278 million (£212.9m) to philanthropic causes, around 1.6% of his total net worth.
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Larry Page – 2.8%
One of Google's co-founders, Page’s net worth, according to Forbes, was $53.8 billion (£41.3bn) last year, and he chose to give away $1.5 billion (£1.1bn) of that, according to Business Insider. This represents 2.8% of his total net worth.
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Stephen Schwarzman – 2.82%
The net worth of Schwarzian, chairman and CEO of investment firm the Blackstone Group, was estimated at $13.8 billion (£10.6bn) last year. Of this, the billionaire gave $390 million (£298.6m) to charity, says the Philanthropy 50 list. This represents 2.82% of his overall net worth.
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Denise Coates – 2.9%
According to Forbes, the co-founder of British betting company Bet365, Denise Coates, was worth $4.1 billion (£3bn) last year. Business Matters states that she donated around $120 million (£91.9m) to charitable causes through the Denise Coates Foundation. This assists charities such as Oxfam, CAFOD, and Alzheimer’s Research UK. Her philanthropy percentage therefore is 2.9% of her total net worth.
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Phil Knight – 2.96%
As a co-founder of Nike and its current Chairman Emeritus, Knight’s net worth was $33.8 billion (£25.9bn) last year. He has a strong history of donating to charity and in 2018 was reported as giving $1 billion (£767m) to an unnamed charity. This represents 2.96% of the magnate's total wealth.
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Pierre Omidyar – 3.4%
Pierre Omidyar’s net worth was given as $11.6 billion (£8.9bn) at the end of last year. He gave $392 million (£300.2m) to good causes according to the Philanthropy 50 list, meaning that the eBay founder donated 3.4% of his total net worth.
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Warren Buffett – 3.85%
The CEO of Berkshire Hathaway was estimated as having a net worth of $88.3 billion (£67.8bn) last year by Forbes. Since 2000 the billionaire has given away billions, and in 2018 his company released a press release stating that he had donated $3.4 billion (£2.6bn) to five charitable causes, including $2.6 billion (£2bn) to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For 2018 his philanthopic percentage was only 3.85%, but he has pledged to give away another $37 billion (£28.4bn) – 42% of his 2018 wealth – to the Gates' foundation on his death. There may well be more donations, however, as he has stated that he will give away 99% of his wealth in his lifetime.
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Sergey Brin – 4.2%
The other co-founder of Google, Brin was worth $52.4 billion (£40.2bn) last year. He gave $2.2 billion (£1.68bn) in donations, according to Business Insider, meaning that Brin donated 4.2% of his net worth to good causes.
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Bill Gates – 4.9%
Co-founder of Microsoft, Gates’ net worth was $97 billion (£74.4bn) last year, according to Forbes, while his charitable donations for the year were estimated at $4.78 billion (£3.67bn) by Philanthropy 50. Therefore, his donations came to just 4.9% of his net worth. However, one year doesn't reflect the true picture of this openly philanthopic billionaire. He runs his own charitable foundation with his wife, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and launched The Giving Pledge in 2010 with fellow billionaire Warren Buffett, where the world’s richest individuals commit to giving away a large percentage of their wealth to charity.
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Ma Huateng – 6.1%
CEO and founder of internet giant TenCent, Huateng’s net worth was $32.8 billion (£25.2bn) last year, making him the second richest person in China. He donated $2 billion (£1.5bn) of this to philanthropic causes, which equals 6.1% of his amassed wealth.
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John and Laura Arnold – 6.19%
Former hedge fund manager Arnold possessed a net worth of $3.3 billion (£2.5bn) last year, says Forbes. Of this, he and wife Laura donated $204.3 million (£156.4m) to good causes, which is 6.19% of their total wealth.
Edward Bass – 6.67%
Texan businessman and environmentalist Bass has been involved in Biosphere 2 (pictured) and its exploration into how humans could survive on Mars. According to this, he donated $160 million (£122.5m) to charity last year. Since Forbes estimated his net worth at $2.4 billion (£1.8bn), this represents 6.67% of the businessman’s total fortune.
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Michael Dell – 7.25%
The chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies had an estimated net worth of $27.6 billion (£21.2bn) last year. And, according to Business Insider, he donated just over $2 billion (£1.5bn) of this, which makes his percentage of giving in relation to net worth a fairly substantial 7.25%.
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Michael Bloomberg – 11.58%
Bloomberg had a net worth of $51.8 billion (£39.8 billion) in 2018, according to Forbes. And CEO World Magazine states that he donated $6 billion (£4.6bn) of this to charity last year, 11.58% of the finance guru's total wealth.
Jay Alix – 16.66%
Billionaire consultant Jay Alix of AlixPartners is also a major philanthropist. With his net worth estimated at $1.2 billion (£920m) last year, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, this means that the $200 million (£153.1m) he gave away is actually a huge 16.66% of his total wealth.
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