According to Mr Dorsey, the donation
represented approximately 28% of his wealth.
He
made the announcement on Twitter, writing that the "needs are increasingly
urgent".
Mr
Dorsey did not lay out exactly where the funds would be sent to help in the
battle against Covid-19.
In
the US there is a shortage of ventilators and personal protective equipment,
and business and individuals are also struggling economically.
Mr
Dorsey will use shares he owns in Square to fund the donations which will be
distributed through the Start Small Foundation.
The
43-year-old is the chief executive of both Twitter and Square.
He
said he was using shares of Square and not Twitter because he owned "a lot
more" of them. The shares will be sold over time, which could impact on
their value and the overall size of the donation.
Once
the Covid-19 pandemic has been "disarmed", the funds will go toward
girls health and education and research into universal basic income.
TWITTER
In a six-part Twitter thread, Mr Dorsey said
he wanted to donate to causes where he could see an impact in his lifetime.
The
donations will be made through a limited liability company. It is a tool many
wealth individuals use for donations, but is often criticized for a lack of
transparency.
Mr
Dorsey sought to get ahead of this charge by posting a link to a google doc which will publicly track the funds
donations.
The
Twitter boss is not the only tech billionaire to pledge part of their wealth
towards coronavirus-related efforts.
Facebook
founder Mark Zuckerberg has committed $30m, the bulk of which is focused on
efforts to create a treatment.
Amazon's
Jeff Bezos has donated $100m to food banks in the US to help those struggling
with hunger during this period.
Apple's
chief executive Tim Cook announced in March the company would donate medical
supplies to Italy which has been hit hard by the virus.
No comments:
Post a Comment