Sandy Weill, who stepped down as chairman of Citigroup in April, has told the US bank's wealthy clients he wants to give away his $1.4bn (€1.1bn) fortune before he dies.

His decision coincides with last week's announcement by Bill Gates to give up his full-time role at Microsoft to devote himself to philanthropic concerns. Gates, who owns assets worth $50bn, is the richest man in the world.