Billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett want more charitable giving

Bill Gates and Warren Buffet want American billionaires to contribute half of their wealth to charity. The two have been campaigning for the past year to encourage charitable giving. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation set up a pledge for people to donate money either through a lifetime or at the time of their death.

The campaign is called The Giving Pledge and has signed on a few wealthy couples, including philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad, John and Ann Doer and many others.

In 2006, Buffett gave 99% of his $46 billion fortune to charity. He now plans to split some shares of his company Berkshire Hathaway between five charities, the most going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The other Class B shares will be transferred to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, owned by Buffet and his wife. The rest shares will be shared amongst charities owned by his three children.

Bill and Melinda gates are doing similar transactions to their own foundation. They sent letters encouraging other wealthy individuals to just give; it doesn't matter what the cause is.