Melinda Gates Becomes a Billionaire After 1st Divorce Payout From Bill

Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates have begun dividing their massive fortune and assets, and in the process, Melinda has become the World’s newest billionaire.

According to reports, Bill’s investment vehicle, Cascade Investment, transferred $1.8 billion in securities to Melinda on Monday, May 3, the same day the pair announced their surprise divorce, according to SEC filings.

By that transfer, Melinda is worth at least $1.8 billion, while the stock transfer puts a slight dent in Bill’s net worth, which fell to an estimated $128.6 billion, from $130.4 billion.

Bill Gates remains the fourth-richest person in the world.

Melinda also received 2.94 million shares of AutoNation and 14.1 million shares of Canadian National Railway Co., which are worth $309 million and $1.5 billion, respectively. (Bloomberg News first reported the transfer.)

Bill uses Cascade Investment, a holding company based in Kirkland, Washington, to manage his money, including the proceeds from selling Microsoft shares.

Bill at one point owned a significant slice of Microsoft, but has given away (to the Gates Foundation) or sold most of his stake over the years and now holds less than 1%