Should the very rich leave their fortunes to their children? A growing number say no. Reports about the future of the fortune of Mango’s founder, Isak Andic, who died in 2024, and the role of philanthropy in it, have revived a debate that has been running among the world’s wealthiest for years.
Bill Gates
The Microsoft co-founder has said his children will receive only a small fraction of his wealth, with the rest going to philanthropy through the Gates Foundation, which works on global health, poverty and education. He has argued that a good education and a modest inheritance are enough for his children to build their own lives.
Warren Buffett
The investor has long said he wants to leave his children “enough money so that they would feel they could do anything, but not so much that they could do nothing”. He has pledged the vast majority of his fortune to charity, and has already given tens of billions of dollars in Berkshire Hathaway shares to the Gates Foundation and to foundations run by his children.
Mark Zuckerberg
In 2015, Meta’s founder and his wife, Priscilla Chan, pledged to give away 99% of their Facebook shares during their lifetimes through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which focuses on science, health and education.
Jackie Chan
The actor has said he will not leave his fortune to his son, arguing that if his son is capable he can make his own money, and that if he is not, he would only waste it. Chan has supported charitable causes through his foundations for decades.
Sting
The musician has said his six children should not expect to inherit much of his fortune, arguing that they need to work and develop their own ambition rather than rely on family money.
Daniel Craig
The former James Bond actor has said he finds large inheritances “quite distasteful”, and quoted the idea that dying rich means you have failed. He has said he would rather give his money away or spend it during his lifetime.
Gordon Ramsay
The chef has said he does not want his children to be spoiled and that most of his fortune will not go to them. He has spoken about making them fly economy while he and his wife travel at the front of the plane.
A wider movement
The Giving Pledge, launched by Gates and Buffett in 2010, invites billionaires to commit more than half their wealth to philanthropy. More than 200 people have signed. Critics point out that philanthropy also gives the rich enormous influence over public priorities, and that tax policy, rather than personal choice, should determine how great fortunes contribute to society. Supporters reply that private giving can fund research and projects that governments do not.
