Bill and Melinda Gates are officially divorced.
Bill and Melinda Gates
A judge signed off on the former couple's divorce on Monday (02.08.21), after Melinda filed for the separation in May after 27 years of marriage.
According to divorce documents obtained by TMZ, neither the Microsoft co-founder - who has an estimated net worth of more than $131 billion - nor his ex will receive spousal support, and she is not expected to change her last name.
The pair's property will be divided in accordance with a Separation Contract they previously signed.
Bill and Melinda have three older children, 22-year-old son Rory, and daughters Jennifer, 25, and Phoebe, 18, so there were no child custody or support issues to iron out.
Just days after the pair announced their split, Bill transferred $1.8 billion in stocks to his estranged wife.
According to documents, Bill sent more than 14 million shares of Canadian National Railway Co., worth around $1.53 billion, and more than 2.9 million shares of AutoNation Inc, worth around $310 million, via his investment firm, Cascade Investment LLC.
The former couple - who married in 1994 - announced their in a joint statement.
It read: "After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives. We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue to work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life."
In 2000, they launched the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a philanthropic organisation which strives to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty across the globe.
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