A Saudi prince is giving £28 billion ($43 billion) to charity.
We don’t need to tell you that’s a ridiculous sum of money.
It’s also the entirety – more or less – of Prince Al-Waheed bin Talal’s personal fortune.
The Saudi business magnate – thought to be the world’s 20th richest person – is a major shareholder in Citigroup and 21st Century Fox, and the owner of Kingdom Holding Company.
He has been called the ‘Arabian Warren Buffett’, and it seems that like his American counterpart, he wants to give back.
The 60-year-old hopes his donation will build a ‘better world of tolerance, acceptance, equality and opportunity for all.’
He adds that he hopes to ‘build bridges to foster cultural understanding, develop communities, empower women, enable youth, provide vital disaster relief and create a more tolerant and accepting world.’
We can’t argue with that.
The Prince says he will donate the majority of his wealth to Saudi Arabia ‘since most of his wealth was achieved from this blessed country’ but money will also extend to countries around the world.
Of course, £28 billion out of £28.5-or-so billion still leaves you with a cool £500 million to play with, and the Saudi prince’s many business interests will continue to make him millions, so his donation won’t leave him living in poverty.
But that doesn’t devalue the gesture, which could make a huge difference to many people’s lives.
