If Warren Buffett Gave Every American $100, How Much Would He Have Left?
Written by
J. Arky
Edited by
Zuri Anderson
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Warren Buffett is one of the richest people on the planet and a generous one, too. But what would happen, hypothetically, if Buffett gave every American $100 and how much would he have left to his fortune?
Rich Jacoby, founder and CEO of GoldenCrest Metals, LLC noted that Warren Buffett’s net worth is currently between $139 billion and $142 billion based on Forbes tracker, while the United States population hovers roughly around 335 million, per World-O-Meters.
“If Buffett gave every American $100, the total cost would be 335 million multiplied by $100, which equals $33.5 billion,” Jacoby went on to explain. “Subtracting that $33.5 billion cost from his net worth of $139 billion, you get $105.5 billion left over for Buffett.”
That being said, there might be more at play than meets the eye in this fictional scenario. Jamie Wall, a personal finance strategist at Gamblizard, pointed out that in this equation there are some risks and the hidden costs, where what is known as the “rake,” — that is tax, market impact and other administrative processes — come into play.
Buffett’s Wealth Is Not Liquid
Buffett’s fortune is not just collecting and being saved in a checking account, with the majority of his money being mostly tied up in Berkshire Hathaway stock, according to Wall.
“To get about $34 [billion] in cash, he’d have to sell a massive chunk,” noted Wall. “But because he’s an insider at Berkshire, SEC rules limit how fast he can sell, like a bet cap at a poker table. Selling too quickly could also push down Berkshire’s stock price, shrinking his own fortune as he sells.”
Taxes Come Into Play
Realistically, there would be some form of taxation put into the distribution of Buffett’s wealth.
“Giving $100 to each American wouldn’t trigger taxes for the recipients (good news), but for Buffett, turning stock into cash means paying capital gains tax-up to 23.8% at his income level,” explained Wall.
“That’s about $8.3 billion gone before a single American sees a dollar. Giving out Berkshire stock instead of cash doesn’t help much either. It just passes the tax bill to the recipients. Either way, the rake gets paid.”
Administrative Financial Details
Wall highlighted that a private citizen like Buffett can’t access government databases IRS and Social Security databases, but would probably need to invest in some sort of method to handle the administrative logistics.
To reach “everyone,” Wall pointed out that Buffett would need “a custom-built payment [method] (prepaid cards, bank transfers, app wallets), which is expensive and prone to errors, fraud and missed recipients. That admin cost chips away at the $100 target.”
Conclusion
Once you strip out taxes, market impact and admin costs, the real number per person would probably land closer to $70, based on Wall’s math.
“That’s a huge drop in efficiency,” Wall commented. “If this were poker, ‘$100 for every American’ is a flashy bet, but between taxes and overhead, the rake eats your winnings. So Buffett definitely can do it, but it’s just not a high-ROI move.
In a perfect world, Jacoby’s final math shows that yes, indeed, Buffett could absolutely afford to give every American $100 and still rank in the top ten wealthiest Americans, just ahead of Michael Bloomberg’s $105 billion.
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