Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg just announced that he’s giving away 99% of his Facebook fortune to charity. The Facebook CEO announced the news in a letter to his newborn daughter, Max, reported Washington Post.

The news shook wall street and went viral within minutes. According to several reports, Zuckerberg plans to donate 99 percent of the Facebook stock owned by him and his wife Priscilla Chan, shares that are worth about $45 billion today, making it one of the largest-ever philanthropic commitments.

Photo: Facebook

In an open letter, the tech leader said that the birth of their first child last week, a daughter named Max, was the motivation to dedicate their considerable wealth to charitable causes now. They took to the social network to express that “they did not want to wait to advance human potential and promote equality for all children.”

The announcement was framed as a letter written by Zuckerberg and wife, Priscilla Chan, to their new baby girl.

Photo: Facebook

“I will continue to serve as Facebook’s CEO for many, many years to come,” Zuckerberg wrote, “but these issues are too important to wait until you or we are older to begin this work.”

Zuckerberg and Chan have already donated more than $1.6 billion to charity in the past decade, including a $100 million gift to the Newark Public School System and a $25 million donation to the CDC to stop the spread of Ebola. The couple also has given $120 million to traditional public schools and public charter schools in the San Francisco Bay Area.

H/T: Huffington Post, Business Insider, Washington Post.

Continue Reading