Bill Gates transferred nearly $8 billion to a private foundation run by his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, in what ranks among the largest divorce-related payouts ever disclosed.
The $7.88 billion contribution was made in 2024 to Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation, a relatively new nonprofit established by French Gates, according to a recently released tax filing reviewed by The New York Times’ DealBook.
The filing offers the first concrete details of the financial terms tied to the Gateses’ 2021 divorce, which remained largely private until the couple formally separated their philanthropic efforts in 2024.
When French Gates stepped down as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, she said the divorce settlement would provide her with billions of dollars to support independent initiatives focused on women and families.
Bill Gates paid nearly $8 billion to his ex-wife, MelindaIn the immediate aftermath of their split, Gates transferred billions of dollars in stock to his ex-wife through Cascade Investment, his private holding and investment firm.
More recently, Bill Gates sent nearly $8 billion to a private foundation run by Melinda French Gates, a transfer that ranks among the largest divorce-related payouts ever disclosed. The $7.88 billion contribution was made in 2024 to Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation, a relatively new nonprofit established by French Gates, according to a newly released tax filing reviewed by The New York Times’ DealBook.
The filing provides the first concrete details of the financial terms tied to the Gateses’ 2021 divorce, which had remained largely private until the couple formally separated their philanthropic efforts in 2024.
When French Gates stepped down as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, she said the divorce settlement would provide her with billions of dollars to support independent initiatives focused on women and families.
Under the settlement, the couple also agreed to divide real estate valued at more than $170 million, an art collection worth roughly $130 million, and a substantial block of Microsoft stock—a division that left French Gates with an estimated $25 billion in assets, according to Forbes.
The newly disclosed payment was tied to a separate charitable agreement triggered by French Gates’ departure from the Gates Foundation. Gates pledged a total of $12.5 billion to support his ex-wife’s independent philanthropy, with $7.88 billion directed to Pivotal Philanthropies and the remaining roughly $4.6 billion believed to have flowed to Pivotal Ventures, a limited liability company not subject to public disclosure requirements.
Melinda Gates announced in 2021 that she and Bill Gates were ending their marriage.
For years, the benchmark for mega-billionaire divorces had been the 2019 split between Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott, which transferred roughly $38 billion in Amazon stock to Scott.
Unlike the relatively straightforward Bezos-Scott settlement, the Gates divorce unfolded over several years, involving complex stock transfers, real estate divisions, and a delayed multibillion-dollar separation of their philanthropic ventures.
In May 2021, Bill and Melinda French Gates publicly announced their intention to divorce, stating they no longer believed they could “grow together.” The announcement came after years of private strain and increasing public scrutiny of Gates’ personal conduct and associations. Their divorce was finalized in August 2021.
Melinda and Bill Gates with their children in an undated photo.
French Gates later cited Bill Gates’ meetings with the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as a major factor in the couple’s split, saying the relationship deeply troubled her and contributed to a breakdown of trust that ultimately proved irreparable.
The marital strain was further intensified by revelations that Gates had an affair with a Microsoft employee in 2000 and later exchanged emails in 2008 with another female employee that were deemed inappropriate—conduct that prompted a board review years later.
Gates stepped down from Microsoft’s board in 2020, several months before the divorce was publicly announced.
In 2022, French Gates launched Pivotal Philanthropies as part of her broader Pivotal organization, created to pursue independent grantmaking and impact investing focused on women, families, and social progress.
The foundation moved into the top tier of American philanthropy after receiving a multibillion-dollar infusion, reporting nearly $7 billion in assets and instantly transforming what had been a modest operation into one of the country’s largest private grantmaking vehicles, according to DealBook. By the end of 2023, Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation reported assets of $604 million.
Alongside Pivotal Philanthropies, French Gates runs Pivotal Ventures, a limited liability company that allows her to pursue charitable grants, investments, and advocacy work without the disclosure requirements that govern traditional nonprofits.
The Post has sought comment from both Gates and French Gates.
