Buffett delays annual Gates Foundation donation pending Epstein ties review

Warren Buffett is postponing his customary summer donation to the Gates Foundation while awaiting the results of a review into the foundation’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein, according to people familiar with his plans. The 95-year-old Berkshire Hathaway chairman, who has given more than $47 billion to the foundation between 2006 and 2025, is expected to decide later this year, possibly when he releases his Thanksgiving letter. The foundation has retained WilmerHale to conduct the review, with findings expected this summer. The pause adds to signs that Buffett’s relationship with Bill Gates has cooled after the release of Justice Department Epstein files. Buffett said in March he had not spoken with Gates since the files came out and said it did not make sense “to do a lot of talking” until the matter was cleared up. Gates told the House Oversight Committee in June that meeting Epstein in 2011 was a “grave error in judgment” but denied witnessing criminal conduct. The scrutiny comes as the Gates Foundation moves toward a planned 2045 shutdown after spending down its endowment and prepares to cut hundreds of jobs in the coming years.