Jessica DiNapoli, Hyunjoo Jin

(Reuters) – The world’s wealthiest man has suddenly more money than the average person can afford in a lifetime. How will he spend it all?

Elon Musk, whose net worth is pegged by Forbes at $270 billion, had traditionally kept his wealth https://www.reuters.com/article/us-billionaires-coronavirus/bezos-musk-among-billionaires-gaining-net-worth-in-pandemic-report-idUSKCN2252JP tied up in his stake in Tesla (NASDAQ:) Inc, the electric car maker founded in 2003. He took out loans against the stock, and then sold stocks to meet his tax obligations.

That was until this week, when his trust sold close to $5 billion worth of Tesla stock in the open market after Twitter (NYSE:) users voted for him to sell 10% of his shares in an online poll https://www.reuters.com/technology/musk-asks-followers-twitter-whether-he-should-sell-10-his-tesla-stock-2021-11-06 he created. To pay the taxes associated with exercising stock options, he sold additional Tesla stock worth $1.1 billion.

Given that Tesla has only sold about 3% so far, more stock sales can be expected. While he hasn’t disclosed his plans for the funds, it has created buzz among the major charities who are always looking to attract wealthy donors.

Melissa Berman, chief executive officer of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (a nonprofit that offers advice about charitable giving), said, “His chance to have great effect is to donate very large sums of money leading organizations that are treating the most pressing problem with global poverty, access to healthcare, and accessibility to health care.”

Musk didn’t respond to our requests for comments on his plans.

Musk has been far more generous than any other billionaire in public philanthropy. According to Forbes, Musk and Amazon.com Inc founder Jeff Bezos gave less than 1% from their net worth while Warren Buffett, George Soros, and George Soros donated more than 20% as of September 1.

However, it is possible that Musk has not made many public donations to charity.

In 2012, Musk signed the Giving Pledge. This pledge was made by billionaires and required them to donate at least 50% of their wealth in their lifetimes or after their deaths. According to their website, the Musk Foundation was established in 2001. It offers grants to support the development of safe AI to benefit mankind.

Musk’s foundation is worth more than $200 million, but that’s not enough to make up his fortune. Brad Smith, president of Candid (a non-profit information service providing information about other foundations), said that Musk’s foundation “isn’t that big” in comparison.

Musk offered $50 million for the top winner of a patent to anyone who could develop a technology that would remove carbon from our atmosphere. However, the prize has not been awarded.

Musk also has flirted to pursue more ambitious goals in philanthropy. Last month, Musk posted that “if the United Nations World Food Programme can… describe exactly how $6billion will solve world hunger, Tesla stock will be sold immediately and done.”

Musk replied to David Beasley (the executive director of the World Food Programme), who asked for a donation. Beasley said he would be willing to talk to Musk about the details. It is unclear if they explored further the possibility.

Beasley, World Food Programme and other representatives did not respond immediately to our request for comment.

Musk’s tweets have shown that he is looking at ways to increase his philanthropic reach. Musk asked his Twitter followers to share their thoughts on “how you can donate money that makes a real difference” (which was surprisingly difficult than it appears).

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Charitable giving also has tax advantages. The United States tax code allows most charitable donations to be deducted from one’s taxable income.

Ray Madoff from Boston College Law School, where she directs the Forum on Philanthropy and the Public Good, said that “Almost every billionaire you can imagine donates money and minimizes taxes bills.”

Musk would also be able to donate cash and receive a tax deduction by gifting Tesla stock. Because shares donated to charity do not attract capital gains taxes, they are exempted from that tax if sold.

The double bonus of giving is amazing. Brian Mittendorf from Ohio State University, said that he is now in an area where there is a significant incentive to give.

As a Tesla board member himself, Musk’s brother Kimbal Musk used this tactic just last week. Unidentified charities were gifted 31,000 Tesla shares valued at $31million.

Tesla’s share prices are nearing record heights and Musk may be able to take advantage by giving more shares, says Bob Lord (associate fellow at The Institute for Policy Studies) who studies tax policy.

When is the best time to give stock? Lord explained that it should peak at the peak.