Jeff Bezos to Keep 75 Percent of Couple's Amazon Stock After Finalizing Divorce

MacKenzie Bezos will retain shares representing about 4 percent of Amazon’s outstanding common stock, making her the third-biggest shareholder at the company, behind Jeff and Vanguard

MacKenzie Bezos announced on Twitter Thursday that she and ex-husband Jeff Bezos have completed the process of dissolving their marriage, leaving her $35.6 billion in Amazon stock. 

MacKenzie Bezos said she was “happy” to be giving her ex-husband 75 percent of their stock in Amazon along with voting control of her shares. She also relinquished to him all of her interests in The Washington Post and the Blue Origin aerospace company.

The settlement would make her the fourth-richest woman in the world. She ranks behind Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, Alice Walton and Jacqueline Mars, according to Bloomberg.

According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, MacKenzie will retain shares representing about 4 percent of Amazon’s outstanding common stock, making her the third-biggest shareholder at the company, behind Jeff and Vanguard. Jeff remains the richest man in the world, even after losing $35.6 billion in Amazon stock.

Amazon’s stock was down about 0.4% Thursday afternoon following the news. 

In a separate statement, Jeff Bezos shared his gratitude to his ex-wife. 

“I’m grateful for her support and for her kindness in this process and am very much looking forward to our new relationship as friends and co-parents,” Bezos said.

The announcement clears up some concerns investors had in the days after the couple announced their plans to get a divorce about who would have voting power at Amazon. The Bezos’ split represented a fairly unprecedented situation according to divorce law experts, since the two were together when Amazon started and before either of them owned such a vast amount of money.

While other founders and CEOs have gotten divorces, most had met their spouses after acquiring their wealth. MacKenzie Bezos, on the other hand, reportedly played a significant role laying Amazon’s roots. In an oft-cited origin story, MacKenzie drove the pair from New York to Seattle while Jeff wrote Amazon’s business plan. MacKenzie eventually negotiated Amazon’s first freight contracts, according to Wired.

This is the full announcement from MacKenzie Bezos: 

Grateful to have finished the process of dissolving my marriage with Jeff with support from each other and everyone who reached out to us in kindness, and looking forward to next phase as co-parents and friends. Happy to be giving him all of my interests in the Washington Post, Blue Origin, and 75% of our Amazon stock plus voting control of my shares to support his continued contributions with the teams of these incredible companies. Excited about my own plans. Grateful for the past as I look forward to what comes next.

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