10 People Who Gave Away Their Billions

1. Bill Gates

I'm sure that everybody expected Bill Gates to be on this list. The chairman and founder of Microsoft has given an enormous $28 billion to several charitable causes.

The majority of that has gone to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, founded in 1999, which aims to reduce poverty and enhance healthcare worldwide.

2. Warren Buffet

Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway has given away $8 billion throughout his lifetime. The money has gone towards health, education and humanitarian causes. Buffett is a public favorite due to his simple life despite his huge fortune. He still drives his old car and lives in his old house.

3. George Soros

The hugely wealthy financier has given away $8 billion to various causes throughout his life. Soros is the founder of the Open Society Foundations, which support democracy and human rights in over 70 countries worldwide.

4. Gordon Moore

Intel co-founder Gordon Moore has given away $6.8 billion to charitable causes throughout his lifetime. It may surprise you to learn that the money he has donated now outstrips his current wealth. His personal fortune is now estimated to be $4 billion. Moore is most famous for his $200 million donation towards the creation of the world's largest optical telescope.

5. Carlos Slim Helu

Carlos Slim Helu currently holds the title to the world's richest man with an estimated net worth of $74 billion. His overall contribution to charity is $4 billion.The majority of which has gone to two foundations he started, Fundación Carlos Slim Helú & Fundación Telmex.

6. George Kaiser

US businessman George Kaiser was born into a rich family. His father and uncle started the Kaiser-Francis Oil Company which Kaiser took over in 1969.

However, due to his acquisition of the Bank of Oklahoma in 1990, he currently stands as one of the world's richest men. Kaiser has given away an estimated $4 billion to charity, the majority of this has gone towards fighting childhood poverty through the George Kaiser Family Foundation.

7. Eli Broad

Savvy businessman Eli broad took over a small, family owned company called Sun Life insurance in 1971 and sold it for $18 billion in 1999. His philanthropic efforts have been focused on a variety of causes including public education, arts and scientific and medical research. In total he has donated over $2 billion.

8. Azim Premji

Azim Premji amassed his $16.8 billion fortune as head of Indian software giant Wipro Limited. He started the Azim Premji Foundation, which is devoted to impoving education in India. Throughout his life Premji has donated $2.1 billion.

9. James Stowers

James Stowers is the founder of American Century Investments. He has contributed $2 billion to genetic research through his Stowers Institute for Medical Research, a biomedical research facility located in Kansas City.

Remarkably Stowers is believed to be worth around $100 million, giving away the majority of his money to charity.

10. Michael Bloomberg

Bloomberg is known to many as the mayor of New York City. He amassed his $19.5 billion fortune through the financial news and information services media company Bloomberg L.P. Throughout his life Bloomberg has donated $1.7 billion, $300 million of that went to his old college, John Hopkins University.