Warren Buffett breaks from a ‘lifetime’ pledge to the Gates Foundation as the Epstein fallout deepens

The Bill Gates-Warren Buffett relationship is fraying. The Oracle of Omaha has reportedly paused his annual gift to the Gates Foundation due to the Microsoft cofounder’s ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to The Wall Street Journal. People familiar with Buffett’s plans told WSJ Buffett is delaying his decision until later this year, possibly when he releases his annual Thanksgiving letter. This is a major change, considering Buffett, 95, made a “lifetime” pledge to the Gates Foundation and has historically donated billions in Berkshire shares each summer. Representatives for Buffett and the Gates Foundation didn’t immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment. Buffett wants to wait for the findings of a review the Gates Foundation has commissioned into its own ties to Epstein, per WSJ. The foundation has retained law firm WilmerHale to conduct it, with findings expected this summer. Buffett has given more than $47 billion to the foundation between 2006 and 2025, according to Reuters. This pause is the latest sign of distance between Buffett and Gates, who were longtime friends and, along with French Gates, formed the Giving Pledge in 2010 to encourage fellow billionaires to give away the majority of their wealth. Their friendship has cooled, though, since the Justice Department’s Epstein files were released. Buffett told CNBC in March he hadn’t spoken with Gates since the files came out, adding that until the matter is cleared up, it doesn’t make sense “to do a lot of talking.” “I don’t want to be under oath,” Buffett added. Gates, in a June deposition before the House Oversight Committee, said he had met Epstein in 2011 and called the relationship a “grave error in judgment,” while denying he ever witnessed criminal conduct. “In the work I do, reputation is the basis for developing partnerships that save lives,” Gates said. “Meeting with Epstein was a grave error in judgment and put this work at