Bill and Melinda Gates have finalized their divorce
International desk || shiningbd
Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates are officially divorced after a judge approved their split on Monday, reports CNN.
The powerhouse couple - who met at Microsoft in 1987 and married in 1994 - announced in May that they would be ending their marriage after 27 years, saying, "We no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives." French Gates filed the petition for divorce in King County, Washington.
The couple's divorce agreement was pursuant to a separate contract, which is not public. Neither person will pay spousal support, according to court documents filed Monday. No other financial details are included in publicly available documents.
As of Monday, Gates' net worth was around $152 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which means he and French Gates could each be worth around $76 billion following the divorce.
French Gates does not plan to change her name, according to court documents.
When the couple first announced their divorce, they said they would continue to jointly run their charity, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which had an endowment of roughly $50 billion at the end of 2020. However, the foundation said last month that the organization was planning a two-year trial period to see if the pair could continue working together effectively.
"If after two years either decide they cannot continue to work together as co-chairs, French Gates will resign her position as co-chair and trustee," CEO Mark Suzman said.
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