Twiggy joins Buffett

Billionaires pledge to give away most of their fortunes

Mike King

Mike King is a Fool.com.au Investment Analyst and Writer. He caught the investing bug more than a decade ago, at a time when the U.S. had invaded Iraq and fear reigned in the markets. His initial success as the markets took off encouraged his passion and thirst for knowledge. With 13 years behind him at one of Australia's largest domestic banks, Mike's passion for stocks led him to join a boutique funds management firm, where he stayed for four years. A seven-year stint in equity research at one of the largest investment banks in the world followed that, giving Mike a thirst to pursue his passion further. Mike holds a Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment and a Graduate Certificate in Financial Planning. His passion is to help retail investors invest better, and that passion was one of his primary reasons for joining The Motley Fool Australia in late 2011. Mike has written thousands of articles since joining, including for Fairfax Media, Yahoo!7, Ninemsn and has also appeared on ABC's The Business. You can see all of Mikes' holdings here

Published February 20, 2013 1:07 pm AEDT

Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest and his wife have joined with more than 100 other billionaires around in the globe in pledging to give away much of their fortunes to charity.

The Forrests, with an estimated wealth of close to $6 billion, much of it tied up through his shareholding in Fortescue Metals Group (ASX: FMG), have signed up, alongside Virgin founder Richard Branson, renowned investor Warren Buffett and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

The pledge requires those who sign to commit to giving away more than half their wealth to philanthropy or charitable causes either during their lifetime or after their death.

In their letter discussing the reasons for signing up, Andrew and his wife Nicola, they say that they have chosen to help those who are least fortunate. "In our country, this is our first Australians, and globally, those suffering the unbearable yoke of modern slavery and forced labour."

The Forrests go on to explain that they will resist the temptation of short term solutions such as cash handouts, preferring instead "to construct long term solutions through collaboration with governments and other organisations." And add "Our aim is to significantly improve people's lives and happiness through their own independent sustainability."

Mr and Mrs Forrest have also flagged education as another key cause.

Other notable billionaires who have signed up include Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, Oracle's Larry Ellison and filmmaker George Lucas.

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