4 ms·

He is donating it to The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which is controlled by himself. Isn't it just a different form of ownership?

comicjk 9y ago
Legally no - a nonprofit has its stated goals apart from whomever runs it, and if the managers aren't following those goals, they can be prosecuted. In practice, small charities can get away with misusing their funds as long as no one notices. But a large charity like the Gates Foundation has a lot of eyes on it, so Gates really has sacrificed a lot of control over that money by donating it.
hbk1966 9y ago
It's a non profit so no one owns it. He is still in control of it though,
- 0xbear 9y ago
  That's a common misconception. Nonprofits _do_ have owners. And also, while they can't make money directly, they can spin off for-profit companies if e.g. they invent a cure for cancer or something.
  - adventured 9y ago
    That's incorrect. Nonprofits can't have owners. https://cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-basics-who-owns-a-nonprofit/ https://cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-basics-who-owns-a-non... https://www.501c3.org/who-really-owns-a-nonprofit/ https://www.501c3.org/who-really-owns-a-nonprofit/
    - 0xbear 9y ago
      They do have "stakeholders" which, naturally, can't profit from either operation or sale of the nonprofit, but, crucially, _can_ control creation of commercial spin-offs and spending. I.e. While de jure they can't be called owners, they still can (and often do) profit indirectly.
dalbasal 9y ago
In a sense, if you're acting legitimately. Yes, if not. In this case every indication is that Bill is using the mechanisms as intended,and then some. Money goes from him to the foundation. The foundation spends it. Once the money is in the foundation it can't go back to him, legally or ethically. They are doing good work, unquestionably charitable. I get the skepticism, given how anything involving tax often works. But, not everything is a scam.
efa 9y ago
Well, they give the money away. So either way he's giving the money away to groups he thinks will do good work with it.
dboreham 9y ago
There are rules about what you can do with the money once it is in a charitable foundation. You can't for example buy a picture of yourself and hang it in your house. Oh wait...
peter303 9y ago
You have to spend at least 5% of your assets a year. Unless you are a church or college, then there is no amount. Some people want the 5% to apply to colleges too.
adventured 9y ago
It's a different form of control, not ownership. Bill Gates can never regain personal ownership of that wealth. If Gates was interested in personally owning all of that wealth, the only logical approach would have been to never give it away in the first place. The point of the foundation is that it's the ideal vehicle to give the wealth away to causes that Bill and Melinda decide they want to have an impact on. It's ideal because in exchange for giving the wealth away, the taxes are avoided. It's that simple. The people that routinely claim in threads like this, that it's just a scheme for dodging taxes, those people apparently do not understand much about foundation regulations or taxes.

comicjk 9y ago

Legally no - a nonprofit has its stated goals apart from whomever runs it, and if the managers aren't following those goals, they can be prosecuted. In practice, small charities can get away with misusing their funds as long as no one notices. But a large charity like the Gates Foundation has a lot of eyes on it, so Gates really has sacrificed a lot of control over that money by donating it.

hbk1966 9y ago

It's a non profit so no one owns it. He is still in control of it though,

0xbear 9y ago
That's a common misconception. Nonprofits _do_ have owners. And also, while they can't make money directly, they can spin off for-profit companies if e.g. they invent a cure for cancer or something.
- adventured 9y ago
  That's incorrect. Nonprofits can't have owners. https://cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-basics-who-owns-a-nonprofit/ https://cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-basics-who-owns-a-non... https://www.501c3.org/who-really-owns-a-nonprofit/ https://www.501c3.org/who-really-owns-a-nonprofit/
  - 0xbear 9y ago
    They do have "stakeholders" which, naturally, can't profit from either operation or sale of the nonprofit, but, crucially, _can_ control creation of commercial spin-offs and spending. I.e. While de jure they can't be called owners, they still can (and often do) profit indirectly.

dalbasal 9y ago

In a sense, if you're acting legitimately. Yes, if not. In this case every indication is that Bill is using the mechanisms as intended,and then some. Money goes from him to the foundation. The foundation spends it. Once the money is in the foundation it can't go back to him, legally or ethically. They are doing good work, unquestionably charitable. I get the skepticism, given how anything involving tax often works. But, not everything is a scam.

efa 9y ago

Well, they give the money away. So either way he's giving the money away to groups he thinks will do good work with it.

dboreham 9y ago

There are rules about what you can do with the money once it is in a charitable foundation. You can't for example buy a picture of yourself and hang it in your house. Oh wait...

peter303 9y ago

You have to spend at least 5% of your assets a year. Unless you are a church or college, then there is no amount. Some people want the 5% to apply to colleges too.

adventured 9y ago

It's a different form of control, not ownership. Bill Gates can never regain personal ownership of that wealth. If Gates was interested in personally owning all of that wealth, the only logical approach would have been to never give it away in the first place. The point of the foundation is that it's the ideal vehicle to give the wealth away to causes that Bill and Melinda decide they want to have an impact on. It's ideal because in exchange for giving the wealth away, the taxes are avoided. It's that simple. The people that routinely claim in threads like this, that it's just a scheme for dodging taxes, those people apparently do not understand much about foundation regulations or taxes.