The founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, was accused of failing to fulfill a promise to get rid of all oil and gas assets in the name of preserving the climate and saving the planet. As Bloomberg recalls, back in 2019, the billionaire said that he sold his direct stakes in oil and gas companies.
However, Gates Foundation documents show that as of the end of 2019, more than $ 100 million remained invested in stocks and bonds of oil and gas companies, including Exxon Mobil, Chevron and BP.
This, Bloomberg points out, clearly demonstrates how difficult it is for wealthy people to give up commodity assets. A representative of the billionaire commented on the information about the assets as follows: “For a very small part of the blocks of shares and bonds, we work with third-party investment managers. They operate independently, and Bill does not manage these investments.”
Earlier, Handelsblatt reported that Gates is going to invest about two billion dollars over five years in the fight against climate change. He will give money to startups and other projects that are engaged in the fight against climate change. In addition, the billionaire called for a fivefold increase in global public investment in research (to at least $ 110 billion a year).
Gates considers the threat of climate change to be more serious than the coronavirus pandemic. According to him, each year the death rate due to this factor will be “even higher” than during the COVID-19 epidemic.