Lee's $38.5M Splurge
David Lee · Paid $38.5 Million for the Only Factory-white 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO
$38.5 millionCould have saved
7,000
lives from malaria
GiveWell estimates its top charities save a life for $3,000 to $5,500. We use the higher figure: $5,500, the cost through Against Malaria Foundation bed nets. GiveWell, How much does it cost to save a life?
Lee bought the Bianco Speciale 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO at Mecum's Kissimmee auction for $38.5 million.
Or it could have
- 7,000
lives from malariaGiveWell estimates its top charities save a life for $3,000 to $5,500. We use the higher figure: $5,500, the cost through Against Malaria Foundation bed nets. GiveWell, How much does it cost to save a life?
- 351,598
hungry kids for a whole yearNo Kid Hungry: $1 can help provide 10 meals for kids. Three meals a day for 365 days is 1,095 meals, about $110 per child per year. No Kid Hungry, What your dollars can do
- 962,500
people clean drinking watercharity: water: about $40 funds clean water for one person, on average, in rural communities. charity: water, How much clean water will my donation provide
- 2,158
homeless veteransAt the U.S. median rent of $1,487 a month (Census, 2024), about $17,844 a year. U.S. Census Bureau median gross rent, via USAFacts
- 1,079
families escaping abuse a safe home for two yearsThe federal transitional housing program for survivors pays market rent for up to 24 months. At the U.S. median rent of $1,487 a month (Census, 2024), that is about $35,688 per family. U.S. DOJ Office on Violence Against Women, Transitional housing
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The purchase: Forbes, February 2026. The full story on Rich vs Reality →