Bill Gates, founder of US software development company Microsoft, has dropped to 5th place in the list of the world’s richest people published by Forbes magazine, lagging behind Mark Zakerberg, founder and CEO of the social network Facebook, Forbes reported on Monday.
The divorce and subsequent division of property between Bill Gates and Melinda Franche-Gates is the main reason for this decline. Gates has been one of the richest billionaires since 1987, and this is the first time he has fallen below 3rd place on the Forbes list.
Gates investment company Cascade Investment LLC (CAS) on Thursday transferred $ 2.4 billion worth of shares to Melinda Franche-Gates, raising her wealth to $ 5.6 billion. Bill Gates had already lost $ 3.2 billion in May after the couple announced their divorce.
Bill Gates’ wealth is now $ 129.6 billion, while Zakerberg is in 4th place with $ 132 billion in wealth.
According to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Melinda French-Gaith has received 3.3 million AutoNation shares from CAS, 2.8 million from Deere & Co. shares and 9.5 million Canadian National Railway shares.
The Gates couple decided to divorce after it became known that Bill Gates had been friends with the scandalous businessman Jeffrey Epstine. Gates was also investigated for a possible relationship with a Microsoft employee in 2000.
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