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The era of billionaire baby-boomers men leading philanthropy is finished—The healthy women take the reins, like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett closed an era of donation. Thanks to newly proposed tax policies, the “stealth donations” based on female confidence and mega-finters like Mackenzie Scott are the future of philanthropy.
Bill Gates and Warren Buffett inaugurated a new golden era of philanthropic gifts, compared to the influence of rockefellers and carnegies. But charity work is about to appear very different, because higher taxes are threatened over liberal institutions, and new donation methods are popularized by mega-donters.
Earlier this month, Gates announced that he would have slept his foundation, giving 200 billion dollars by 2045 and accelerating his plans to lose his personal fortune of $ 100 billion.
“There is an air of anticipation in terms of SI and how people will follow his traces,” explains Amir Pasic, dean of Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University Fortune.
And with the prolific philanthrope, Warren Buffett, recently announcing his planned departure from the bar of Berkshire Hathaway at the age of 94, even more changes are expected. Its pledge of donations, with 240 billionaires would have promised a pool of $ 600 billion, opened the hearts and pockets of the rich of Ulra. The question arises if the billionaires will take the torch and remain faithful to their promises when Buffett also inevitably leaving the projectors of the engagement.
Experts agree that a change is on the horizon, but that does not mean a screaming stop in philanthropy. In fact, he could open the door to a more diverse group of donors to take the lead.
“We will probably see more women getting out of the shadows,” predicts Pasic.
What will philanthropy look like in a new era
Many billionaires have started foundations as a means of channeling their philanthropic efforts, but a recent decision of the House of Representatives of the United States could upset this practice. This week, a set of budgetary rapprochement was approved, which stipulated a 10% tax on the foundations with more than $ 5 billion in assets.
“The reason why this is insidious is that it will really strike the great liberal foundations like Gates, Ford and Soros,” says Kathleen McCarthy, director of the Center on Philanthropy at Cuny, says Fortune. “While the conservative foundations are much smaller and pay a much lower rate.”
Thousands of liberal foundations led by billionaires, including Gates, Scott, George Soros and Mark Zuckerberg, could be touched by these tax increases. This could completely change the way billionaires approach philanthropy.
“(Billionaires) will start to look at alternative mechanisms once they realize that they will be forced to found the sunset,” said McCarthy. “This is what is compromised at the moment.”
But some ultra-rich donors already rewrite the rules; The practice of Mackenzie Scott’s “stealth gifts” involves giving money directly to non -profit organizations, trusting them to manage funds as they see fit, without any expectations.
According to McCarthy, as the billionaires are far from the foundation -based model, they are drawn towards other ways of giving. This includes inspiration by Scott direct donation strategy as a way to get around the new taxes.
“I think she is a pioneer and a kind of moral ballast to the way Gates was,” explains Bella Devaan, associate director of the Charity Reform Initiative at the Institute for Policy Studies, explains Fortune. “I see that not only be a trend, but change common sense towards philanthropy based on confidence.”
Scott donates via its yield base, which has given more than $ 19.25 billion to date in 2,450 non -profit organizations, and experts claim that billionaires could be inspired to donate organizations directly to facilitate the tax stroke. Devaan also predicts that Melinda French Gates will be a pioneer of the philanthropic LLC, an alternative to traditional foundations.
Experts fired on a common thread between who innovates philanthropy, and how the general composition of mega-donors changes: women are in the spotlight. With more than 200 new billionaires struck in 2024 only, almost four each week, more players enter the field and women enter richness. Women being the face of philanthropy can become the status quo.
Women become new philanthropic frontrunners
When they are responsible for appointing the rising stars of philanthropy to fill the large shoes in the doors and buffett, the experts already notice some frontrunners. The only person in everyone’s mind: the charitable vagabond Mackenzie Scott.
“It is a woman who makes a fairly daring statement on the way she will give her money: trusting the recipients and asking not any report,” explains Pasic. “It contrasts with the very technocratic way that Bill Gates tackled things.”
Experts also throw names like Melinda French Gates, who have also played a central role in the Gates Foundation, and continues to be a leading voice. Meanwhile, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan pay money to innovate human health. They also note that women have long been benevolent philanthropists, only behind the scenes; Madame CJ Walker, an African-American woman who became the first self-taught millionaire woman, was a major donor at the turn of the 20th century.
And in 2025 – when American women have even more access to wealth and power than ever – this group will only be superchared. Not only did they entered stable and well -paid management positions, but many women have also become financially advised because they have taken control of their money and their careers.
“You will see women become much more important mega donors,” says McCarthy. “They are very comfortable to manage money. They are very comfortable doing research and they are looking for ways to change the system. ”
This story was initially presented on Fortune.com
