The Giving Pledge
The Giving Pledge is a charitable campaign, founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, to encourage wealthy people to contribute a majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes. As of June 2022, the pledge has had 236 signatories from 28 countries.[1] Most of the signatories of the pledge are billionaires, and as of 2016, their pledges are estimated at a total of US$600 billion.[2]
Formation | 2010 |
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Type | Charitable organization |
Membership | 236 |
Founders | Bill Gates Warren Buffett |
Website | givingpledge.org |
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Description
The organization's stated goal is to inspire the wealthy people of the world to give at least half of their net worth to philanthropy, either during their lifetime or upon their death. The pledge is a public gesture of an intention to give, not a legal contract.[3] On The Giving Pledge's website, each individual or couple writes a letter explaining why they chose to give.[4]
History
In June 2010, the Giving Pledge campaign was formally announced and Bill Gates and Warren Buffett began recruiting members.[5] As of August 2010, the aggregate wealth of the first 40 pledgers was $125 billion.[6] As of April 2011, 69 billionaires had joined the campaign and given a pledge,[7] and by the following year, The Huffington Post reported that a total of 81 billionaires had pledged.[8] By May 2017, 158 individuals and/or couples were listed as pledgers.[4][9] Not all pledgers are billionaires.
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was removed from the list in December 2022 following his arrest.[10]
Banker T. Denny Sanford had his name removed from the list in May 2023 following the unsealing of court documents about his possible involvement with child pornography.[11]
The Giving Pledge was cited as inspiration for the Jewish Future Pledge, a charitable campaign launched in 2020 to encourage American Jews to give at least half of their charitable giving to Jewish- or Israel-related causes.[12]
List of notable pledgers
Net worth is as of 2022 for notable signers. A full list of pledgers is available online.[13]
Name | Net worth in billion $US | Source of wealth | Industry | Year of pledge | Year of death |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Elon Musk | 251.1[14] | Tesla, SpaceX | Cleantech, Rocketry | 2012 | |
Warren Buffett | 110[15] | Berkshire Hathaway | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Bill Gates | 102.4 | Microsoft | Manufacturing, licensing | 2010 | |
Larry Ellison | 66.8 | Oracle | Tech | 2010 | |
MacKenzie Scott | 55 | Amazon | Tech | 2019 | |
Mark Zuckerberg | 42.5[16] | Meta Platforms | Tech | 2010 | |
Azim Premji | 32.8 | Wipro | Tech | 2013 | |
Vladimir Potanin | 31.4[17] | interros | Investment | 2013 | |
Jim Simons | 25.2 | Renaissance Technologies | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Dustin Moskovitz | 24.04 | Tech | 2010 | ||
Carl Icahn | 22 | Icahn Enterprises | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Pierre Omidyar | 21.8 | eBay | Tech | 2010 | |
Andrew Forrest | 20.8 (2023)[18] | Fortescue Metals Group | Mining | 2013[19] | |
John Doerr | 12.7 | Kleiner Perkins | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Patrick Soon-Shiong | 11.5 | Abraxane, investments | Healthcare | 2010 | |
Melinda French Gates | 11.4 | Microsoft | Tech | 2010 | |
Jack Dangermond | 9.2 | ESRI | Geoinformatics, Environment | 2016 | |
George Lucas | 8.59 | Lucasfilm | Media | 2010 | |
Charles Feeney | 8[20] | DFS Group | luxury retail | 2011 | 2023 |
George Kaiser | 7.6 | Kaiser-Francis Oil Company | Energy | 2010 | |
Judith Faulkner | 7.5[21] | Epic Systems | Tech | 2015[22] | |
Henry Samueli | 6.7 | Broadcom Corporation | Tech | 2011 | |
Jeffrey Skoll | 6.1 | eBay | Tech | 2010 | |
Mitchell and Emily Wei Rales | 5.4 | Danaher Corporation | Business | 2019 | |
Bernard Marcus | 4.5[23] to 6.1[24] (2019) | The Home Depot | Retail | 2010 | |
Barron Hilton | 4.5 | Hilton Worldwide | Services | 2010 | 2019 |
David Green | 4.5 | Hobby Lobby | Retail | 2010 | |
Jeff Green | 4.4 | AdECN | Tech | 2021 | |
Ronald Perelman | 4.3 | MacAndrews & Forbes | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
David Rubenstein | 4.3 | The Carlyle Group | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Walter Scott Jr. | 4.2 | Berkshire Hathaway | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Julian Robertson | 4.1 | Tiger Management | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Anil Agrawal | 4 | Vedanta Resources | Mining | 2021 | |
Thomas Secunda | 3.6[25] | Bloomberg L.P | Tech | 2010 | |
B. R. Shetty | 3.5 | NMC Health | Healthcare | 2018 | |
David Rockefeller | 3.3 | Standard Oil, inheritance | Energy | 2010 | 2017 |
Ken Langone | 3.3 | The Home Depot | Retail | 2010 | |
Bill Ackman | 2.8 | Pershing Square Capital Management | Finance & Investments | 2012 | |
Charles Zegar | 2.8[26] | Bloomberg L.P | Tech | 2010 | |
Peter G. Peterson | 2.8 | Blackstone Group | Finance & Investments | 2010 | 2018 |
Garrett Camp[27] | 2.7 | Uber | Tech | 2017 | |
Brian Armstrong | 2.6 | Coinbase | Cryptocurrency | 2018 | |
Ted Turner | 2.4[28] | Cable News Network | Media | 2010 | |
Herbert and Marion Sandler | 2.4 | Golden West Financial Corporation | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Gerry Lenfest | 2.4 | Lenfest Communications | Media | 2010 | 2018 |
T. Denny Sanford | 2.2 | First PREMIER Bank | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
James E. Stowers | 2[29] | Twentieth Century Mutual Funds | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Tom Steyer | 1.6 | Farallon Capital | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
George P. Mitchell | 1.6 | Mitchell Energy & Development Corp | Energy | 2010 | |
Ted Forstmann | 1.6 | Forstmann Little & Company | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Jon Huntsman Sr. | 1.5 | Huntsman Corporation | Manufacturing | 2010 | |
Mark Pincus | 1.4 | Zynga | Tech | 2022 | |
Sidney Kimmel | 1.4 | Jones Apparel Group | Fashion & Cosmetics | 2010 | |
Irwin M. Jacobs | 1.2 | Qualcomm | Tech | 2010 | |
Bernard Osher | 1.1[30] | Golden West Financial Corporation | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
Duncan MacMillan | 1.1 | Bloomberg L.P | Tech | 2010 | |
Lorry I. Lokey | 1 | Business Wire | Media | 2010 | |
Sanford I. Weill | 1[31] (2021) | Shearson Loeb Rhoades | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
John Morgridge | 1 | Cisco Systems | Tech | 2010 | |
Tom Monaghan | 1 | Domino's Pizza | Food & Beverage | 2010 | |
Lyda Hill | 1 | Hunt Oil Company, inheritance | Energy | 2010 | |
Anne Wojcicki | 0.8 | 23andMe | Genealogy | 2022 | |
Shelby White | 0.6 | Leon Levy, Odyssey Partners | Finance & Investments | 2010 | |
T. Boone Pickens | 0.5 | Mesa Petroleum, BP Capital Management | Energy, Finance & Investments | 2010 | 2019 |
See also
References
- "FAQ: How many people have joined the Giving Pledge, and where are they from?". The Giving Pledge. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
- "Global Billionaire Population: The Billionaire Census 2018". Wealth-X. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- "Forty U.S. billionaires pledge to give half their money to charity". Xinhua News Agency. 4 August 2010. Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
A statement from the Giving Pledge website said "the pledge is a moral commitment to give, not a legal contract."
- The Giving Pledge :: Pledger Profiles Retrieved 16 May 2017
- Carol Loomis (16 June 2010). "The $600 billion challenge". Fortune. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- Blackburn, Bradley (4 August 2010). "The Giving Pledge: Billionaires Promise to Donate at Least Half Their Fortunes to Charity". ABC News. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
- 10 More U.S. Families Commit to the Giving Pledge , retrieved 25 October 2011
- "Warren Buffett, Bill Gates Giving Pledge Gets 12 More Billionaires To Commit Over Half Of Their Fortunes", Huffington Post, April 20, 2012
- Lorenzetti, Laura (1 June 2016). "17 More Billionaires Join Buffett and Gates' Giving Pledge This Year". Fortune. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- Alexander, Sophie (2022-12-14). "Sam Bankman-Fried Cut From Giving Pledge Website After Arrest". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on 2022-12-14. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- McEvoy, Jemima (25 September 2023). "Billionaire T. Denny Sanford Cut From The Giving Pledge After Child Porn Probe Documents Released". Forbes. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
- Oster, Marcy (2020-05-14). "New Jewish giving pledge takes a page from Gates and Buffett initiative". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- "Pledgers". The Giving Pledge. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- "What is Elon Musk's Net Worth?". 7 July 2023.
- "Warren Buffett". Bloomberg Billionaires Index. 22 November 2022. Archived from the original on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- "Mark Zuckerberg". Bloomberg Billionaires Index. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- "Vladimir Potanin". Bloomberg Billionaires Index. 22 November 2022. Archived from the original on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- "Andrew Forrest". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
- Robin, Myriam (2013-02-20). "Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest pledges to give away half his wealth". SmartCompany. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
- Dwyer, Jim (2017-01-05). "'James Bond of Philanthropy' Gives Away the Last of His Fortune". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-01-05.
- "Judy Faulkner". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- "Judy Faulkner – The Giving Pledge". The Giving Pledge. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- Denham, Hannah (2019-07-01). "Home Depot co-founder plans to give away most of his billions". Washington Post. Retrieved 2022-11-16.
- Nussbaum-Cohen, Debra (2019-12-20). "Home Depot founder Bernie Marcus on sunsetting his foundation". Jewish Insider. Retrieved 2022-11-16.
- "Thomas Secunda". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
- "Charles Zegar". Forbes Profile. 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- Kolodny, Lora (2017-11-22). "Uber and Infosys co-founders are latest billionaires to join The Giving Pledge". CNBC. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
- "Ted Turner". Forbes. 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
- "James Stowers, U.S." Forbes. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
- "Forbes.com: Forbes World's Richest People 2005". www.forbes.com. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
- "Sandy Weill". Forbes Profile. 6 April 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2022.