publish time

28/01/2024

author name Arab Times

publish time

28/01/2024

MacKenzie Scott.

WASHINGTON, Jan 28, (Agencies): Last year, MacKenzie Scott made significant adjustments to her Amazon holdings. According to a regulatory filing obtained by Bloomberg, the 53-year-old philanthropist and ex-wife of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos sold 65.3 million Amazon.com Inc. shares in 2023. This divestiture accounted for approximately 25% of her stake in the tech giant, valued at $10.4 billion as of the most recent Friday.

Following her divorce from Bezos in 2019 after 25 years of marriage, Scott secured around a 4% stake in Amazon, amounting to $38.3 billion. This settlement propelled her to the 22nd spot on Bloomberg's ranking of the world's 500 richest individuals, making her the wealthiest woman globally at the time.

Although Scott has gradually reduced her Amazon shares over the past five years, the online retail giant still constitutes the majority of her $37.6 billion net worth, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

In addition to managing her wealth, Scott has embraced philanthropy wholeheartedly. She joined the Giving Pledge in 2019, a commitment by billionaires to donate at least half of their wealth to charitable causes. Since then, she has contributed over $16.5 billion to various charitable organizations.

In explaining her decision to take the Giving Pledge, Scott shared her perspective on giving back in a letter posted on the initiative's website. She expressed, "I have no doubt that tremendous value comes when people act quickly on the impulse to give. No drive has more positive ripple effects than the desire to be of service." She emphasized that her philanthropic approach would be thoughtful, acknowledging that it requires time, effort, and care, but asserted, "I won't wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty."