To the surprise of Seattleites and everyone across the nation, Bill and Melinda Gates announced their divorced on Tuesday, May 3rd on their Twitter accounts.
The nerdy power couple gave a vague statement that danced around the reason for their separation stating “…we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in the next phase of our lives.”
The couple met in 1987, shortly after Melinda joined Microsoft, which Bill founded. They married a few years later in 1994.
The news of their separation comes on the heels of another headline divorce in Seattle between Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, and Mackenzie Bezos. While Mackenzie walked away from the marriage with a cool $38 billion, it’s unclear how Bill and Melinda intend to split their finances.
Though were originally believed to have a prenuptial agreement, however public court documents released after they filed for divorce unveil the lack of a prenup. Both Bill and Melinda have significant shares in Microsoft and also co-founded the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation together, which aims to improve the global health and vaccine landscape and donates $5 billion annually.
In their statement, they said they’ll continue to work together amicably in their foundation.
We have to wonder, if these philanthropic billionaires who seem extensively well-matched can’t make it, is there any hope for the rest of us?
