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They will give half of what they have. Nearly 40 American billionaires have pledged to donate over 50% of their fortune to charity. The initiative, called "Giving Pledge" ("Pledge"), was launched in mid-June by Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, and Warren Buffet, the richest man in America. "We just started the operation and we already have tremendous returns," enthuses the latter, which the Americans nicknamed the sage of Omaha.

The director George Lucas, CNN founder Ted Turner, the New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, co-founder Larry Ellison of Oracle (also the highest paid boss in the world) are among the generous donors. "I'm not a staunch supporter of the legacy," says his side T. Boone Pickens, chairman of oil group BP."It usually generates more harm than good."

"Operation Giving Pledge aims to solve the pressing problems of society by inviting the rich American families to commit to more than half of their fortune to philanthropy and charity", is it explained in a release. It is a moral commitment, not a legal contract, is it explained. The total amount promised is not specified.

"We have more money that our family will ever need, evidenced by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife, Pam, in a letter. "There is no reason to keep it in a box so it can be useful today to tackle the worst problems of our time." For his part, Buffett had said he would give 99 % of its wealth (more than 47 billion dollars) to charity.

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