Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has reduced her stake in Amazon by 42% over the past year — giving away billions of dollars to charitable organisations. The former wife of Jeff Bezos held 81.1 million shares in the company at the end of September following a reduction worth $12.5 billion. Scott had received a 4% stake in Amazon during her high-profile divorce from the billionaire businessman in 2019.
According to a Bloomberg update quoting regulatory filings, Bezos currently holds 81.1 million shares on behalf of his ex-wife. He remains the reporting party as the terms of their divorce gave him voting rights over her shares. The figure represents a significant drop from the 139 million shares he had held a year earlier — translating to roughly $13 billion. It remains unclear whether the decline represents stock sales, charitable transfer, or some other transaction.
The regulatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission was made on Tuesday. It also noted that Bezos beneficially owned more than 964 million Amazon shares as of September 30. This includes the 81.1 million shares over which he exercises sole voting authority.
MacKenzie Scott has emerged as a prominent philanthropist in recent years — giving more than $19.25 billion to more than 2,450 non-profit teams. According to her Yield Giving website, the organisation was established “to share a financial fortune created through the effort of countless people”. It explains that their network of staff and advisors “has yielded over $19,250,000,000 to 2,450+ non-profit teams to use as they see fit for the benefit of others”. She is also a signatory of the ‘Giving Pledge’ and vowed to eventually give away her entire fortune.
“In addition to whatever assets life has nurtured in me, I have a disproportionate amount of money to share. My approach to philanthropy will continue to be thoughtful. It will take time and effort and care. But I won’t wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty,” Scott wrote.