Billionaire American businessman David Koch dies at 79

The billionaire American businessman David Koch has died at the age of 79. Twitter was soon flooded with posts about the death of one of the richest man in the world.

"It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of my brother David," Charles Koch said in a statement on Friday. "Anyone who worked with David surely experienced his giant personality and passion for life."

Charles also revealed that David was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer 27 years ago and was given a grim prognosis of a few years to live. "David liked to say that a combination of brilliant doctors, state-of-the-art medications and his own stubbornness kept cancer at bay. We can all be grateful that it did because he was able to touch so many more lives as a result," he added.

"While this is a very sad day for us all, I want you to know that David was proud of the extraordinary work you all have done to make Koch Industries the successful company that it is today. He will be greatly missed, but never forgotten," Charles further said.

A chemical engineer by education, Koch joined the family business Koch Industries, the second-largest privately held company in the United States, in 1970. He became president of the subsidiary Koch Engineering in 1979, and became a co-owner of Koch Industries, with older brother Charles, in 1983. He served as an executive vice president until his retirement in 2018.

He was the 1980 candidate for Vice President of the United States from the United States Libertarian Party and helped finance the campaign.

He and his brother Charles have donated to political advocacy groups and to political campaigns, almost entirely Republican. As of June 2019, he was ranked as the 11th-richest person in the world, (tied with his brother Charles), with a fortune of USD 48 billion. In 2015, he was ranked as the 29th most powerful person in the world.

David Koch who was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1992, also donated significant sums to medical research, as well as museums, theaters, and other artistic endeavors. notably donating to Lincoln Center and $65 million to support a renovation of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.