Jeff Bezos was dubbed the richest man in the world in 2018. Despite being so wealthy, he was apparently not as giving as you might seem. Earlier today, his ex-wife, Mackenzie Bezos, who received half of the Amazon fortune, signed off of the Giving Pledge.
Mackenzie Bezos revealed that she'll be donating half of her $35B Amazon fortune to charity over her lifetime of in her will. It's interesting since Jeff Bezos refused to decline it for years and now that Mackenzie's divorced the Amazon founder, it appears as though she may have disagreed with their decision to sign the Giving Pledge.
"We each come by the gifts we have to offer by an infinite series of influences and lucky breaks we can never fully understand. In addition to whatever assets life has nurtured in me, I have a disproportionate amount of money to share," she wrote in a letter. "My approach to philanthropy will continue to be thoughtful. It will take time and effort and care. But I won't wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty," she said in the letter which was published today."
Jeff Bezos took to Twitter to praise his wife for the decision. "MacKenzie is going to be amazing and thoughtful and effective at philanthropy, and I’m proud of her. Her letter is so beautiful. Go get ‘em MacKenzie," he wrote.