World’s richest family announce divorce terms
MacKenzie Bezos, 48, will be awarded about 4% of the company, a stake worth roughly $36 billion.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie, who have four children, are splitting up after 25 years of marriage. GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File/Jerod Harris
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his soon-to-be-ex-wife, MacKenzie Bezos, have announced a divorce settlement that will see her gaining ownership, though not the voting power, for 25% of the couple’s Amazon stock. The portion she will gain amounts to roughly 4% of Amazon or $36 billion (R510 billion).
The record divorce settlement – which also will award Jeff Bezos all of the former couple’s joint holdings in The Washington Post and a space-flight company, Blue Origin – is likely to remove uncertainty over the extent of his continued control over Amazon – a company he founded in 1994 and of which he remains CEO.
Forbes estimated Jeff Bezos’ worth earlier this year at $131 billion (R1.8 trillion) before the divorce settlement. The world’s second-richest person at the time was Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, a neighbour of the Bezoses, with about $96.5 billion (R1.36 trillion), according to Forbes.
The marriage lasted 25 years and during that time they have had four children.
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