IBTimes.com

American billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffet will approach rich people in China and India to urge them to donate at least half their wealth, according to Wall Street Journal.

After releasing a list of 40 rich donors who pledged to give more than half of their fortunes to charity on Wednesday, they now plan to take the idea beyond the US borders. "Mr Buffett said he and Mr Gates in coming months will meet with wealthy individuals in China and India to talk about the pledge in the hopes of adding more names from outside the US," The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The move is part of Gates-Buffet initiative, launched in June, that originally aimed at asking American billionaires to pledge that their wealth would be donated either during their lifetime or upon death.

US has 403 billionaires - the most in the world, followed by China and Russia.

This year, the Forbes list of the richest people features 117 Chinese, with 64 from mainland, 25 from Hong Kong and 18 from Taiwan.

China may have passed India in its number of billionaires, but India still has bragging rights as home of the region's richest. Ten of Asia's top 25 are Indian. Hong Kong and Japan each have five. Mainland China has just one.

Hong Kong Tycoon Li Ka-shing ranks third in  Asia's top 25 list with  a net worth of USD 21 billion, followed by Lee Shau Kee with a net worth of USD 18. 5 billion, Kwok family USD17 billion, Cheng Yu-tung USD 6.8 billion, and Joseph Lau USD 5.8 billion.

Mainland tycoon Zong Qinghou, with his $7 billion beverage empire, ranks 103rd in the 2010 world's richest list.

"In 2006, I made a commitment to gradually give all of my Berkshire Hathaway stock to philanthropic foundations. I couldn't be happier with that decision," he wrote in a pledge letter.

"Now, Bill and Melinda Gates and I are asking hundreds of rich Americans to pledge at least 50 per cent of their wealth to charity."

Bill and Melinda Gates have given more than $28 billion to their foundation since it was founded in 1994 that focuses on health and education.

"We have committed the vast majority of our assets to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help stop preventable deaths such as these, and to tear down other barriers to health and education that prevent people from making the very most of their lives," Gates wrote in his pledge.

To contact the editor, e-mail: