This separation is like breaking up a global corporation. Bill and Melinda Gates have announced the end of their marriage after 27 years. It could become one of the most expensive divorces in history.
Just two years after Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is also hit. According to Forbes, the fourth richest man in the world and Melinda Gates have announced their divorce after 27 years. This separation could shake the world of the super-rich even more than the mega-divorce of Bezos in 2019. The ex-wife MacKenzie Scott had transferred 25 percent of his Amazon shares. At the time, they were worth around 36 billion US dollars (almost 30 billion euros today), which made Scott the fourth richest woman in the world at one stroke. The Gates divorce is definitely more complicated and it could also become more costly.
Bill Gates: Divorce after 27 years of marriage
The couple still publicly announced their end of marriage. “After careful consideration and a lot of work on our relationship, we made the decision to end our marriage,” said a jointly signed statement that Bill Gates posted on Twitter and Melinda French Gates on Instagram (“French” is her maiden name) . “We have raised three incredible children in the past 27 years and built a foundation that works to help everyone live healthy, productive lives around the world.” They emphasized that they wanted to continue working together for their non-profit organization. “But we no longer believe that we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of life,” wrote Melinda and Bill Gates, asking,
The main question now is: Did Gates and the former Microsoft executive sign a prenuptial agreement before the wedding? That wasn’t the case with Bezos, he and Scott had married shortly before Amazon was founded. The New York Times speculated that Gates has a prenuptial agreement. “People”, however, denied this with reference to Melinda Gates’ divorce petition filed with the court. The magazine had therefore been able to see the document. According to “People”, the joint assets of the still-married couple are to be divided up on the basis of a separation agreement. Melinda Gates stated in the application that maintenance payments were not necessary. The relationship was reportedly described as “incurably broken”. A separation date was not mentioned.
Melinda and Bill Gates: How expensive will the Gates divorce cost?
Despite the affirmation, there is now speculation as to how amicable the divorce and subsequent cooperation in the foundation will really take place. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is an international heavyweight in the pharmaceutical industry, with endowment assets of around 42 billion dollars. The fight against malaria and other infectious diseases has always been a focus. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joined the German biotech company CureVac as an investor in 2015. Like Biontech, CureVac has developed an mRNA corona vaccine. ( Also interesting: That’s why Bill Gates invests in stocks of these 10 companies )
Bill Gates ranked fourth on Forbes’ list of billionaires worldwide in 2021 . The business magazine estimated his fortune as of March 5, 2021 at 124 billion dollars (about 103 billion euros). The Microsoft co-founder was in second place behind Bezos in the 2020 ranking. However, the enormous price gains in the first Corona year for Tesla and LVMH had Elon Musk and Bernard Arnault overtake Gates. Bezos was named the richest person in the world again despite the expensive divorce.
