Before moving to the United States in 1990 to work as a vice-president of a product group at Microsoft, I had not spent any time thinking about the concept of philanthropy. My wife, Carolyn, and I had made annual small donations to a range of well-known charities but I had never given much thought to the concept of the very wealthy allocating serious money to address issues in society.

When I arrived in Seattle, where Microsoft is headquartered, I quickly learned that America, for all its ills, has a deep culture of philanthropy. If you are wealthy and do not give considerable amounts to charities you are seen as a pariah. Dinner party conversations are more likely to be about what charities you support and less about the price of your house.