Warren Buffett announced today a plan to dispose of all his Berkshire Hathaway shares within approximately eight years. He is currently converting 8,000 Class A shares. This conversion creates 12,000,000 Class B shares to facilitate annual donations.
Buffett will donate the shares to four foundations: the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the Novo Foundation. He stated his goal is for the grants to these foundations to grow annually.
Following this donation, Buffett’s ownership will consist of 188,290 Class A shares. He will also hold 1,162 Class B shares. This news reaffirms the long-standing succession and philanthropic plans for the company.