Bill Gates pledges to leave his £68million fortune to charity... rather than his children

Bill Gates has pledged to give all of his £58 billion fortune to charity - rather than leaving it for his children.

The billionaire founder of Microsoft, who  steps down from his post next week, said he wants to make a 'positive contribution' to the world.

He has promised to transfer his money to the charity he has said up with his wife Melinda, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which funds health and education projects around the world.

His revealed his decision a week before he steps down as executive chairman of Microsoft, the firm he founded more than 30 years ago

The 52-year-old will continue to work as non-executive chairman and will spend just one day a week at the business.

Speaking about the joint-decision he made regarding his fortune with his wife, he said: 'We've chosen not to pass it on to our children.

'We want to give it back to society in the way that it will have the most positive impact.

He said he did not want to leave it in his will for his children and added: 'It's like saying which children are most important.

In an interview with BBC's Newsnight he said: 'I want to make a positive contribution to the world.'

Bill Gates will step down from his post next Friday 33 years after he founded Microsoft in 1975.

Speaking about the joint-decision he made regarding his fortune with his wife Melinda, he said: 'We've chosen not to pass it on to our children'

His success with the computer giant has made him the richest man in the world for 13 years in the row according to Fortune magazine's rich list.

When he founded the firm he said he wanted  to put 'a computer on every desk and in every home.'

Many people have said that the computer revolution would not have happened without him and more than 90 per cent of computers in the world run on Microsoft Windows.

He will be succeeded in his post by Steve Balmer, the co-chief executive since 2000.

Although the move was announced two years ago and there has been lots of planning, many people speculate that Gates' departure will leave a big gap in the firm.

Charlene Li, from consultants Forrester Research said: 'What they're going to lose is that founding focus, and the ability to rally the troops.'

Microsoft have an outstanding financial performance and currently have profit margins estimated at 30 per cent.

The company currently makes weekly profits of more than £0.5 billion, four times as much as Google.

Gate's charity, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, claims to be the biggest philanthropic organisation in the world.

But earlier this year Gates was reported to have blocked £1 million donation from Microsoft to Prince Charles charity, the Princes Trust.

Microsoft had agreed in principle to give the money to the organisation's Business Programme, which helps young people start their own companies.

But negotiations between Microsoft and the Prince's Trust broke down and the offer was abruptly withdrawn, despite the software company being one of the charity's patrons.

An insider at the firm said at the time that on closer inspection the specific project the Prince's Trust wanted to use the new money for was not' 'tightly focused enough around technology' to benefit its recipients.