Warren Buffett’s Charity Auction Headed to Record With $3.5 Million Bid
Warren Buffett’s Charity Auction Headed to Record With $3.5 Million Bid
(Bloomberg) -- Warren Buffett’s annual charity auction has already set a record, garnering a $3.5 million offer, with three days left to go before bidding closes for a meal with the billionaire investor.
The winner of the weeklong auction, which ends Friday, and as many as seven friends will get to dine with Buffett at Smith & Wollensky in New York. Proceeds benefit San Francisco-based charity Glide, an organization that seeks to address issues including hunger, poverty and homelessness.
Buffett, 88, has helped the charity raise almost $30 million through the annual auction, which his late wife, Susie Buffett, helped create. Past winners include Greenlight Capital’s David Einhorn as well as investor Ted Weschler, who later joined Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. as a deputy. The previous record of $3.46 million was set in 2012 by a bidder who chose to remain anonymous, and another bidder matched that record in 2016.
| Year | Winner | Winning Bid |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Anonymous | $25,000 |
| 2001 | Anonymous | $18,000 |
| 2002 | Anonymous | $25,000 |
| 2003 | David Einhorn, Greenlight Capital | $250,100 |
| 2004 | Jason Choo, Singapore | $202,100 |
| 2005 | Anonymous | $351,100 |
| 2006 | Yongping Duan, California | $620,100 |
| 2007 | Mohnish Pabrai, Guy Spier, Harina Kapoor | $650,100 |
| 2008 | Zhao Danyang, Pure Heart Asset Management | $2,110,100 |
| 2009 | Salida Capital, Canada | $1,680,300 |
| 2010 | Ted Weschler | $2,626,311 |
| 2011 | Ted Weschler | $2,626,411 |
| 2012 | Anonymous | $3,456,789 |
| 2013 | Anonymous | $1,000,100 |
| 2014 | Andy Chua, Singapore | $2,166,766 |
| 2015 | Zhu Ye, Dalian Zeus Entertainment Co. | $2,345,678 |
| 2016 | Anonymous | $3,456,789 |
| 2017 | Anonymous | $2,679,001 |
| 2018 | Anonymous | $3,300,100 |
To contact the reporter on this story: Katherine Chiglinsky in New York at kchiglinsky@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Daniel Taub, Alan Mirabella
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.