Stamp Collection May Fetch $5-Million for Charity

A financier’s decision to auction his collection of classic British stamps may result in one of the largest donations ever to the aid organization Doctors Without Borders, reports The New York Times.

William Gross, manager of Pimco, a bond-management company, is planning to auction the collection of British stamps, whose value is estimated at between $4-million and $5-million, in June and give the money to the humanitarian organization, the newspaper reports.

Those items are a portion of his overall collection, which also includes every United States stamp issued. He is the first person to own every American stamp, the Times reports.

Mr. Gross plans to add to his American stamp collection, and said his British collection, which includes 18 examples of the world’s first postage stamp, from 1840, could provide a “good source of funding for charity.”

Mr. Gross has been a generous donor in the past and appeared on The Chronicle’s annual list of the 60 top contributors in 2004.