Published 10:51 IST, December 16th 2020
Jeff Bezos's ex-wife MacKenzie donates $4 billion to charity in 4 months
Jeff Bezos' ex wife donated nearly $4.2 billion to 384 organizations in the past four months, according to a post that she published on Medium.
- World News
- 2 min read
MacKenzie Scott, ex-wife of Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos announced on December 15 that she has donated nearly $4.2 billion to 384 organizations in the past four months. In a post that she published on Medium, MacKenzie revealed that she has given in charity close to a total of $6 billion in her goals of financially supporting the groups from the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. Her charitable contributions included food banks, meals on wheels for the hungry, and other basic amenities for the underprivileged.
Citing the economic losses and worse health outcomes which have been a challenge for the survival of people of colour and vulnerable, Bozos ex-wife wrote that the donations ignited ‘hope’ in some of the poorest people. As the crisis ravaged the lives of many people, MacKenzie alleged that her initiatives such as community fridges, COVID relief funds, impromptu person-to-person Venmo gifts, viral debt-relief campaigns, and mutual aid initiatives helped the people who lost their jobs during the pandemic.
Wealth climbed to $23.6 billion
Over the last 4 months, Bezos’ ex-wife said that she had given away in charity $4,158,500,000 worth gifts to 384 organizations across all 50 states, including Puerto Rico, and Washington D.C. A team that she set up to aid those in crisis, sought suggestions from the field experts, funders, and non-profit leaders and conducted data analysis on community needs. According to her post, those that got relief from her charitable funds shared stories of hope and tears.
The world’s 18th-richest person with a $60.7 billion net worth, MacKenzie Scott’s wealth climbed to $23.6 billion in the year 2020, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Her post suggests that she had initially listed some 6,500 organizations to gift her wealth to, but ultimately narrowed it down to 384 groups. The 50-year-old, who was formerly married to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, had signed the Giving Pledge to make large donations out of her wealth in the year 2019.
Updated 10:50 IST, December 16th 2020