Warren Buffett's VP: 'People criticize the rich for being jealous'

 Warren Buffett's VP: 'People criticize the rich for being jealous'

Billionaire Charlie Munger admits the world is under stress because of inequality, but thinks those who criticize the super-rich are jealous.

"It's human nature. We look around, look at other people and envy them if they have more," Munger said in an interview with Yahoo Finance ahead of the Daily Shareholders' Meeting. Journal, "That envy is always a big deal." He is currently the Chairman of the Daily Journal.

Munger is also the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and the right-hand man of investment legend Warren Buffett. He and Buffett chair the annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders' Meeting, answering investors' questions about a wide range of issues around the world. According to Forbes, Munger currently owns $2.4 billion.

Charlie Munger - Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. Photo: AP

Charlie Munger - Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. Photo: AP

A study by the NGO Oxfam last month found that since the pandemic emerged, the wealth of the world's 10 richest people has more than doubled, from $700 billion to $1.5 trillion.

Oxfam estimates that inequality between rich and poor is part of the cause of more than 21,300 deaths every day. They argue that inequality poses many threats to low-income people, such as lack of medical care or lack of food.

Before that, Munger also commented on income inequality many times. At Berkshire's AGM last year, the 98-year-old billionaire said that the US economy's hot growth and loose monetary policies will narrow the gap between rich and poor in the country.

"When things are booming and interest rates are very low, what will happen next is the younger generation has a better chance of getting rich than we do. The gap between rich and poor will therefore be much narrower."

However, in an interview yesterday, he also said that this gap "will never disappear". "In my personal life, I always put aside the thought of jealousy and advise others to do the same," he said.