In the 14 months since April 2020, as the planet reeled from the COVID crisis, the number of world billionaires increased by 660 to 2,755 (24 new ones in the UK alone). Sandeep Sachdeva writes that billionaires can and should be doing much more to help solve the humanitarian crisis of hunger and poverty exacerbated by the pandemic. He classifies billionaires by the type of reaction they may have when asked to share more of their wealth.

COVID-19’s impact on the billionaires and the poor—one year on:

The number of billionaires increasedfrom 2,095 to 2,755.
Their wealth increased from USD 8 trillion to USD 13 trillion. In the US, the top 0.01% now hold almost 10% of the national wealth compared to the bottom 50%, who hold less than 2%. In India, billionaire wealth is the equivalent of over 17% of the country’s GDP, one of the highest shares in the world. In the UK, the number of billionaires increased by 24 to 171.
Several billionaires stepped up to help but compared to their resources and the scale of the pandemic, the stories appear insignificant. Their total donations likely do not add to the riches of the wealthiest of them all – Jeff Bezos, with USD 177 billion.
At the same time, the monthly income for labour workers in India fell 62%,from INR 9,500 per month (USD 125) in pre-pandemic times to INR 3,500 per month (USD 45).
In a series of surveysof mostly migrant workers in Gurgaon, India, conducted by our team at the Safe in India Foundation, we found 52% unemployment (May 2020); a 34% reduction in income even among those back into employment; and 82% had to borrow to survive, their top concern being money (June 2020). In May 2021, we called to check on 100+ injured workers we had assisted; 44% of them were back in their remote villages without work.

The five types of billionaires, their soliloquies, and a thought experiment with you:
1. The “James Bond of Philanthropy” billionaire: “I am good, but I realise that I also got very lucky. I really see no reason I should have earned, year after year, hundreds, or thousands of times the annual income of my own staff or say a good doctor, teacher, nurse, soldier, or farmer. I must do something about it by redistributing my wealth NOW. I may not live long enough to see real change happen, and so I am in a hurry.”

Chuck Feeny, a ‘former billionaire’ who has given all his wealth to charity, may be one of them. In just the last few months, MacKenzie Scott has distributed over USD 4 billion in gifts to 384 organizations. Jack Dorsey famously created a USD 1 billion relief fund early in the pandemic.

2. The retiree-philanthropist billionaire:

: “I have been chasing profits for so long! My family and I can now afford to give away a few billion and still live comfortably. I will set up a foundation with most of my wealth and when I retire in my old age, I will spend my time at that foundation giving back.”

There are many billionaires who have pledged their riches. Some of them are reminiscent of this category.
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