Berkshire Hathaway chair Warren Buffett, 94, announced yesterday via a news release that he will convert 1,600 Class A shares of the company into 2.4 million Class B shares worth $1.14 billion and distribute them to four family foundations as part of his latest estate planning move. The decision will reduce his Berkshire Hathaway Class A holdings to 206,363, a 56.6% drop since his 2006 pledge to give away his wealth, estimated at over $150 billion, according to Forbes.
He will donate 1.5 million Class B shares with fewer voting rights to The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named after his late first wife. The Oracle of Omaha will evenly donate the remaining 900,000 shares to The Sherwood Foundation, The Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation — each led by his three children, Howard Graham Buffett, Peter Buffett, and Susan Alice Buffett.
Buffett Reflects On The Nature Of Mortality, Shares Estate Planning Advice
Buffett recalled how he and "Susie" thought for decades that she would outlive him to distribute most of their combined wealth before she passed away in 2004. "Father time always wins. But he can be fickle – indeed unfair and even cruel – sometimes ending life at birth or soon thereafter while, at other times, waiting a century or so before paying a visit. To date, I've been very lucky, but, before long, he will get around to me," Buffett wrote.
Upon Susie's passing away, she left $10 million to their three children, who are now in their 60s and 70s. "These bequests reflected our belief that hugely wealthy parents should leave their children enough so they can do anything but not enough that they can do nothing," he wrote. The billionaire investor suggested parents should have their children read wills when they are "mature" before signing them so that each child understands the reasons for their decisions and the responsibilities they will be entrusted with upon their death.
Buffett Designates Three Unnamed Successor Trustees
In his latest shareholder letter, the legendary investor also explained that he never wanted to create an empire or have plans that extended beyond his children. "The expected life span of my children has materially diminished since the 2006 pledge. They are now 71, 69, and 66," he noted. While Buffett has come to completely trust his three children to fulfil his wishes around philanthropy by donating all his Berkshire holdings upon his passing, he isn't very confident that future generations can handle distributing enormous wealth in a different philanthropic landscape.
Thinking it could "take longer to deploy" the wealth he has collected than his children live, the investor decided future decisions would be "better made by three live and well-directed brains than by a dead hand." For that reason, he designated three younger potential successor trustees who his children trust. However, he didn't name them in the letter.
Buffett's Eldest Son To Become Non-Exec Chairman
Buffett had previously stated that his children would have around ten years to donate his wealth. However, the investor said his eldest son, Howard, would become Berkshire Hathaway's non-executive chairman when he dies. While Howard, a farmer, thinks it won't be easy to assume that role and donate his father's wealth as he wishes, he is confident his siblings would come together and use their individual experiences to take risks that make a difference. "I can tell you, we'll sit down in a room when the time comes, and we'll get it figured out pretty quickly," he had said.
