$350 million of Dell stock gifted into two charitable vehicles by Michael and Susan Dell

The billionaire philanthropist couple who was featured on the cover of Lifestyles Magazine/Meaningful Influence, in an exclusive interview in 2008, recently transferred $350 million worth of Dell stock into two of their charitable vehicles.

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation received about 40% of the shares; the remaining 60% went to donor-advised funds that Michael and Susan Dell formed.

The Dell Foundation has donated at least $2.4 billion since its creation in 1999, primarily to organizations linked to health and education in South Africa, India, and the United States.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Dell Foundation announced grants totaling $15 million to organizations there that assist families with medical needs and resettle refugees. In addition, the foundation provides South African and American low-income kids with college scholarships

The Dell Foundation supports groups in India that offer low-income families living in metropolitan areas credit and savings opportunities.

The Dell’s Foundation has assets of about $2 billion.

Currently, Dell’s approximately 50% ownership in Dell (his gift was just over 1% of his Dell shareholdings) and 40% ownership in VMware account for almost $50 billion of Dell’s total net worth. The remainder is mostly kept by his private investment company, DFO Management.

In 2003, Dell handed his family foundation two installments of 10 million shares each, making this week’s offering his greatest share donation by dollar amount.

Michael Dell is chairman and chief executive officer of Dell Technologies, an innovator and technology leader providing the essential infrastructure for organizations to build their digital future, transform IT and protect their most important information.

With revenue of more than $102B, Dell Technologies is one of the world’s largest IT companies serving the needs of global corporations and governments to small businesses and consumers. Dell Technologies’ commitment to ethics and privacy is a source of pride and inspiration within the company. Dell has been recognized as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute, and has also been recognized by Fortune as a Most Admired Company and Best Place to Work, by Forbes as one of America’s Best Employers For Women and by Newsweek as a Most Loved Workplace.

Michael’s story started when he founded Dell Technologies with $1000 in 1984 at the age of 19.

Notably quoted as saying that “technology is about enabling human potential,” Michael’s vision of how technology should be designed, manufactured and sold forever changed the IT industry. In 1992, Michael became the youngest CEO ever to earn a ranking on the Fortune 500.

Known and admired for his astute business vision and bold moves, Michael took Dell Technologies private in 2013, setting the stage to architect the largest technology deal in history with the combination of Dell, EMC and VMware in 2016 and the subsequent relisting of Dell Technologies on the public markets in 2018. Michael continues to serve as chairman of the VMware board of directors following the spin-off of VMware from Dell Technologies in 2021.

In 1998, Michael formed MSD Capital, a private investment firm that exclusively manages the capital for the Dell family. And in 1999, he and his wife, Susan Dell, established the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation to accelerate opportunity for children growing up in urban poverty in the U.S., India and South Africa.

Michael is an honorary member of the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum and is an executive committee member of the International Business Council. He is also a member of the Technology CEO Council and the Business Roundtable. He serves on the advisory board of Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management in Beijing, China and on the governing board of the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad, India. He is a board member of Catalyst and also served as the United Nations Foundation’s first Global Advocate for Entrepreneurship.

Michael is the author of two books, Direct from Dell and Play Nice But Win.