The American tech mogul has three children with his estranged wife, Melinda Gates.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recently shared his plans to leave only a small portion of his vast fortune to his children.
In an interview on the podcast Figuring Out with Raj Shamani, Gates discussed his views on inheritance and philanthropy.
The American tech mogul, who has three children with his estranged wife Melinda Gates — Jennifer, Rory, and Phoebe — explained that it would not “favour” his kids to inherit significant wealth.
“My kids got a great upbringing and education, but you know, less than 1% of the total wealth. I decided it wouldn’t be a favour to them… It’s not a dynasty, and I’m not asking them to run Microsoft.
“I want to give them a chance to have their own earnings and success, not overshadowed by the incredible luck and good fortune I had,” he said.
Gates further explained that families in the technology sector tend to be less focused on passing down wealth to future generations.
“The people who’ve made fortunes from technology are less dynastic… they give a lot of that away.
“You can have a view of giving away your capital or just giving away your earnings. And, of course, I love all philanthropy, but the tech sector is probably the most aggressive about giving most of it away — not other sectors.”
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Bill Gates on giving through his foundation
Gates highlighted that the highest purpose for his wealth is to support the needy through his philanthropic work with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
“The highest calling for these resources is to go back to the neediest through the foundation.
“And they [his children] have seen the success of the foundation. I hope they’re very proud of the foundation. I’ve seen cases where kids actually tell their parents to be more philanthropic.”
According to Forbes, Gates’ fortune is estimated at around $101.2 billion (approximately R1.9 trillion). This means his three children will inherit about $1.1 billion (around R21 billion)—one per cent of his wealth, at least for now.
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