Warren Buffett, the 95-year-old Oracle of Omaha, has dominated headlines this week with candid revelations that could reshape his philanthropic legacy and signal his enduring market savvy post-CEO handover. In a bombshell CNBC interview aired April 6, Firstpost reports Buffett hinted he might halt his multibillion-dollar annual donations to the Gates Foundation amid fresh scrutiny from Jeffrey Epstein files linking Bill Gates to the disgraced financier. While insisting Gates had no role in Epsteins crimes and that hes never met the conman himself, Buffett said hes not ready to commit, echoing his 2024 pledge to redirect 99.5 percent of his remaining fortune to a trust run by his children after his death. He admitted not speaking to Gates lately, per ThinkAdvisor, fueling speculation on a rift though Buffett stressed zero involvement in foundation operations.
On the business front, Buffett remains deeply engaged at Berkshire Hathaway as chairman, despite stepping down as CEO to Greg Abel on January 1. CNBC details his daily pre-market huddles with investment chief Mark Millard, where he greenlights trades aligned with Abels veto power, including a recent small new investment. He downplayed recent market jitters from US-Iran tensions and Berkshires eight-day losing streak ending March 30, Barchart notes, calling current dips nothing compared to three 50-plus percent plunges in his career. With over 370 billion in cash equivalents, mostly Treasury bills, Buffett revealed snapping up 17 billion in one week via The Street, poised to deploy the 350 billion war chest if a big decline hits: If there is a big decline, we will deploy.
Berkshire resumed stock buybacks in March after a nearly two-year hiatus, Economic Times calls it a bullish signal of selective value hunting, while Abel deployed 1.8 billion into Tokyo Marine per Investor Weekly. Buffett even owned selling Apple too soon. No public appearances or social media pops surfaced, but these comments, his first major post-stepdown, underscore his biographical pivot toward oversight and caution.
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