Jeff Bezos’ former wife MacKenzie Scott has become the world’s richest woman after Amazon shares surged amid coronavirus lockdown.
Since the pandemic began, the rich have been getting richer with US billionaire wealth increasing by $800 billion, while more Americans file for unemployment due to job losses.
Due to this, Amazon stocks skyrocketed as stay-at-home orders and closed businesses made consumers rely more on the retail giant for online orders and home deliveries.
The rise in the e-commerce giant’s stock—which has spiked from $2,000 to $3,500 per share since the beginning of 2020— has propelled Scott up the billionaires’ list.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, the philanthropist and writer is now the 12th richest person and the No. 1 wealthiest woman in the world, sitting ahead of L’Oréal heiress Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, who previously held the position.
After her 2019 divorce, Scott became the fourth-richest woman in the world, behind Bettencourt Meyers, Alice Walton of the Walmart family, and Jacqueline Badger Mars of the Mars candy empire.
Those women’s net worths have remained relatively steady, less affected by the recent surge in tech stocks.
Scott’s net worth is currently pegged at $67.4 billion. In 2019, her fortune was estimated at $36 billion based on Amazon’s share price at the time.
Scott’s new-found position at the top spot came after receiving huge divorce settlement from Amazon founder Bezos last July.
The former spouses reached a settlement, granting Scott around 19.7 million Amazon.com shares, giving her a four percent stake in the company.
The couple had announced in January 2019 they were divorcing after 25 years of marriage and four children after the National Enquirer revealed the tech entrepreneur had been having an affair with former news anchor Lauren Sanchez.
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Since her divorce, Scott has emerged as a prominent philanthropist. That month, she revealed details of some of her charitable commitments.
As part of ‘The Giving Pledge’ – a commitment among some of the nation’s richest to donate the majority of their wealth – Scott has given $1.7 billion away to nonprofit organisations.
This is a notable decision because, in contrast to many couples who make the pledge together, Scott did so independently of her former husband, who has not made the same promise.
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Scott’s ex-husband continues to be the richest person in the world with a net worth of $205 billion, holding his position as number one on Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Bill Gates is second with $126 billion to his name, followed by Mark Zuckerberg at $112 billion and Elon Musk at $110 billion.
