Bill Gates reveals the shocking sum that his children will inherit when he dies

Entrepreneur is one of the richest people in the world, and his children's prosperity seems to be guaranteed from birth. Or is it?

In a podcast interview, entrepreneur Bill Gates reveals how he will divide up his fortune after his death. © Jason Redmond/AP/dpa

As a guest on the podcast , Bill Gates revealed how much of his fortune he would leave to his three children after his death.

However, the sum is not as high as one might have expected.

The father of three will only bequeath a small portion of his fortune, he admitted in the interview.

"In my case, my kids got a great upbringing and education, but [they will get] less than 1 percent of the total wealth, because I decided it wouldn’t be a favor to them," explained the 69-year-old.

Nevertheless, his offspring – who he shares with his ex-wife Melinda French Gates – will not have to live in poverty.

The co-founder of Microsoft currently has a fortune worth around 102 billion dollars, so even a small percentage of that is considerable.

The entrepreneur goes on to emphasize that he wants to give Jennifer (28), Phoebe (22), and Rory (25) the chance to earn their own money.

"I wanna give them a chance to have their own earnings and success, be significant and not overshadowed by the incredible luck and good fortune I had," he added.

When asked whether the three were disappointed about the relatively small inheritance, Gates replied, "You don't want your kids to ever be confused about your support for them and your love for them."

That's why he told them at a young age that he would offer them all unlimited opportunities, but the majority of his monetary resources would go to help people in need through his charitable foundation.