Bill Gates has transferred somewhere between $3 billion and $4 billion in shares to his former wife Melinda, according the Wall Street Journal.
The shares, of which $850 million are of Deere & Co. (a 7 percent stake in the equipment company), were most recently transferred to Melinda on Thursday. The transfers were recorded Friday by Gates and his investment company Cascade Investment LLC, both of which still own about 9.3 percent of Deere & Co. even after the transfer.
Bill also reportedly transferred Melinda stakes in a Canadian railroad, a Coca-Cola bottler, AutoNation Inc. and others that ultimately reach a value of $2.4 billion. The former couple has a net worth of $130 billion, Forbes estimates, and the pair reportedly had a separation agreement in place for the split.
Bill and Melinda announced their split earlier this month after 27 years of marriage. They didn’t provide any details on what led to the decision, but have asked for privacy during this time.
Since, however, multiple reports have emerged surrounding the couple’s decision to call it quits, including alleged conversations between Bill and Jefferey Epstein. A source told the Daily Beast that the Microsoft founder went to convicted sex offender Epstein for advice and to get “away from Melinda,” which a rep for Bill has since denied.
“Bill never received or solicited personal advice of any kind from Epstein — on marriage or anything else. Bill never complained about Melinda or his marriage to Epstein,” the spokesperson said.
