The Gates Foundation said it is reviewing its ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as the Justice Department documents that have been released have increased scrutiny on Bill Gates. The foundation said Wednesday that the review is aimed at examining past engagement and updating policies for vetting and developing new partnerships.
CEO Mark Suzman, the organization said, commissioned an external review in March with support from Gates. The Wall Street Journal first reported on a staff memo describing the review, and the foundation said the effort is meant to assess both prior foundation engagement with Epstein and current partnership policies.
A foundation spokesperson said the board and management are expected to receive an update on the review this summer. The foundation did not publicly name the third-party investigators.
The scrutiny extends beyond the foundation’s internal review. According to the Justice Department’s files, released materials include email correspondence between Gates and Epstein about philanthropic projects, calendar entries documenting dates they held meetings, and photos of Gates at events also attended by Epstein. The documents also frame Gates as having denied knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and saying they met only to discuss philanthropy; the coverage also said Gates has not been accused of wrongdoing related to their connection.
The foundation’s own prior disclosures have also come under renewed attention. In a February statement, the foundation acknowledged that “a small number” of employees met with Epstein based on his “claims that he could mobilize significant philanthropic resources for global health and development.” The foundation said at the time that employees did not create a fund together with Epstein and that the foundation made no payments to him.
In the same February disclosure, the foundation said, “The foundation regrets having any employees interact with Epstein in any way.” It tied the earlier contact to the question of what Epstein told employees about his ability to mobilize philanthropic resources.
Warren Buffett, one of the foundation’s most prominent backers, said he would wait for more information as congressional hearings and Justice Department documents continue to be reviewed. Buffett told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” last month that he recognized “there was a lot I didn’t know,” and he said he would “wait and see what unfolds” in the documents and hearings.
Buffett also said the foundation has a large endowment and that Gates has “plenty of his own money.” He said he had previously completed his annual donation in late June, after resigning as a foundation trustee in 2021, and he described the Epstein-related materials as running into “three and a half million” pages, calling the volume “astounding,” in comments carried in the coverage.
In response to Buffett’s remarks, a Gates Foundation spokesperson described him as “an extraordinarily generous partner” for nearly two decades. The spokesperson said the foundation was “deeply grateful for his support,” which, according to the statement, has helped the organization “accelerate progress on some of the world’s toughest challenges” that would not otherwise have been possible.
The foundation’s Epstein-related review arrives amid other major changes. The foundation previously shared plans in January to cap operating costs and cut as many as 500 positions, about 20% of staff, by 2030, and it later announced that it would close in 2045. The external review is the foundation’s latest step to address associations that have drawn questions from funders as it works on goals including maternal and child health and infectious disease control.