According to sources familiar with the matter, renowned investor Warren Buffett has, for the first time in 20 years, paused his annual donation to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The 95-year-old will await the outcome of a review concerning the foundation's links to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein before making a final decision.

As per a long-standing lifetime commitment, Buffett has typically donated shares of Berkshire Hathaway to the Gates Foundation each June or early July. This year marks the first interruption to that established practice.

The insider indicated that Buffett might wait until he issues his annual Thanksgiving letter later this year to announce any related decisions.

The Gates Foundation has recently been embroiled in controversy due to its chairman Bill Gates's association with Epstein. Documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice in January revealed that some foundation staff had also been in communication with Epstein. Since then, Buffett's relationship with Gates has reportedly grown increasingly distant.

It is reported that the foundation's CEO, Mark Suzman, has engaged the law firm WilmerHale to conduct a specific review of the foundation's interactions with Epstein, with results expected this summer.

Sources say Buffett and his core team have maintained communication with the Gates Foundation's management recently to stay updated on the progress of the review.

Neither Berkshire Hathaway nor the Gates Foundation has responded to the reports.

Buffett, now 95, began donating his wealth in 2006. By 2025, he is estimated to have donated approximately $48 billion worth of stock to the Gates Foundation. Following the Gates' divorce in 2021, Buffett resigned as a trustee of the foundation. In 2024, he stated to the media that he would cease posthumous donations to the foundation.

In a previous interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box" on March 31, Buffett addressed the matter of Gates and Epstein for the first time. He stated that he had not communicated with Bill Gates since details about Jeffrey Epstein came to light, expressing a desire to avoid being in a position of knowing information that could lead to a subpoena. Despite this, Buffett acknowledged their past friendship and philanthropic collaboration but emphasized he would refrain from further comment until all facts were fully clarified.

On the same day, March 31, Buffett also announced a highly anticipated move: the relaunch of his charity lunch auction.

On May 15 Beijing time, the revived "Buffett Charity Lunch" was auctioned for a final price of $9,000,100 (approximately 61 million Chinese yuan). The eBay auction page showed 172 bids from five bidders. The identity of the winning bidder has not been publicly disclosed.