5 Surprising Facts About the Wizard of Omaha: In Celebration of Warren Buffett’s 93rd Birthday, Legendary Investor and Bitcoin Opponent

August 30, 1930 is the birthday of Warren Edward Buffett, the legendary investor and famous American economist. He celebrated his 93rd birthday this September to remain the oldest member of the list of 10 richest people in the world.

Buffett is one of the staunch opponents of Bitcoin and digital currencies in general, and for this reason, he is not considered a very popular figure among activists in this field. Even in 2022, during a meeting with the shareholders of the Berkshire Hathaway investment institution (Berkshire Hathaway), where he is the CEO and chairman of the board, he mockingly said that he was not ready to pay even $25 to buy all the bitcoins in the world.

Of course, Buffett has indirectly had relations with the space of digital currencies. For example, Berkshire Hathaway, which he leads, has already invested in Nubank. Nubank is a Brazilian neobank that also provides services in the field of digital currencies.

Buffett even appeared in 2020 at a banquet hosted by Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, where several other figures from the digital currency industry, including the founder of Litecoin, were present and met him. Since 2000, Warren Buffett has organized a banquet every year with the person who donates the most amount to the Glide Foundation. At that time, Buffett had agreed to attend this party in exchange for Sun donating $4.5 million to a charity.

Buffett’s detractors usually attribute the veteran investor’s reluctance to digital currencies to his age and lack of understanding of the technology. This claim is somehow consistent with Buffett’s principles and he has said many times in different ways that he doesn’t invest in things he doesn’t understand.

Although Buffett’s comments about Bitcoin and digital currencies may seem funny and ignorant to the activists of this space who are heavily involved in the latest technologies, his unique achievements over the years of working in the traditional financial markets cannot be ignored and his opinions in the field Investing, economics and starting and managing a business should be considered valuable. Buffett’s different lifestyle from many of the world’s rich people is also a matter of reflection, and his experiences during several decades of economic activity can be an inspiration to many people.

5 surprising facts about Warren Buffett’s life

1. Starting work at the age of 6 and reaching 53 thousand dollars of income at the age of 16

There are various stories that show Buffett’s ingenuity in starting a business from an early age. For example, he is said to have earned his first income at the age of 6 selling chewing gum and Coca-Cola drinks.

When Buffett’s father became a member of the US Congress, his family moved from Omaha, Nebraska to Washington. In Washington, Buffett earned $175 a month by delivering Washington Post newspapers to people’s homes, which at the time was more than the monthly salary of most American teachers. Through this work and selling small goods like second-hand golf balls, he was able to accumulate $53,000 by the age of 16.

2. The hand of Harvard University to Cinebaft

After receiving his degree from the University of Nebraska, Buffett planned to enter Harvard Business School, but Harvard officials opposed his admission.

Desperate for not being accepted to Harvard, he soon found out that Benjamin Graham and David Dodd, two of his favorite American economists, were teaching at Columbia University’s business school and sent them his application.

Buffett says he wrote his letter to Graham and Dodd as follows:

Dear Professor Dodd, I thought you were dead, but now that I know you are alive and teaching at Columbia, I am very interested in coming.

After sending this letter, Buffett was accepted to attend Columbia University.

3. Buffett has not changed his house since 1958

When you think of a famous billionaire, you probably think of someone who owns multiple luxury homes, expensive cars, and goes on flashy trips all the time. But the witch of Omaha has nothing in common with these ideas, and maybe that is why many people are fascinated by her.

Although he is currently worth more than $120 billion, he still lives in the same modest five-bedroom house in Omaha that he bought in 1958 for only $31,500. In addition, like many rich people in the world, he does not have a personal yacht and goes on expensive trips.

4. Buffett has earned 99% of his wealth after the age of 50

Numerous statistics of Buffett’s economic activities show that he has acquired more than 99% of his current wealth after the age of 50. Buffett was a successful man at the age of 52, but his fortune of $376 million at that time is not comparable to the $120 billion that is currently estimated.

This issue clearly shows how successful and stable Buffett has been in managing his capital and maintaining the profitability of his business activities over the years.

5. Allocating 99% of your wealth to charity

Warren Buffett has spent his fortune many times, in different ways and in incredible amounts. For example, in 2021 alone, he donated $4.1 billion of his wealth to the Gates Foundation, owned by Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda Gates, which is considered the most powerful charity foundation in the world.

Buffett has also promised to give 99% of his wealth to charity during his lifetime or after his death, meaning his children will receive almost nothing from their father’s wealth.

Buffett says:

After seeing the lives of many ultra-wealthy families, my advice is this: Leave enough for your kids to do whatever they want, but not so much that they can’t do anything with it.