Warren Edward Buffett (born August 30, 1930; Omaha, Nebraska) is an American businessman, investor and philanthropist. He is the CEO and largest shareholder of the Berkshire Hathaway investment company. Buffett, who has a net worth of $104 billion as of March 2023 and is the fifth richest person in the world[1], is considered one of the world's best-known fundamental investors as a result of his investment success.[2][3] He is considered one of the most successful investors of the 20th century. According to Forbes Magazine's "2008 Billionaires List", he was the richest person in the world with a fortune of $62 billion in 2008. In 2007, he was among Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World.[4] At the same time, in a research conducted by Time magazine in 2012, he was shown as one of the most influential people in the world.
In June 2006, he transferred 10 million shares of his investment company (approximately $30 billion) to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, making the largest donation ever made in the United States. Buffett has also pledged to donate 99 percent of his wealth to charitable causes, primarily through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.[6] Together with Bill Gates, he also founded The Giving Pledge in 2010, where billionaires pledge to donate at least half of their wealth.[7]