Melinda French and Bill Gates’ real reason for divorce — and where her finances stand after divorce settlement

Melinda French isn’t afraid to openly reflect and get candid about her headline-making divorce from Bill Gates.

The former couple, who share kids Jennifer, Rory and Phoebe, tied the knot in 1994, and were married until 2021.

They have since then both spoken with candor about their divorce — with most recently the Microsoft founder admitting it’s the “mistake” he regrets the most — and now his ex-wife, amid the release of her new book The Next Day, out later this month, is giving insight into where she stands now. You can see a video of her opening up about the divorce below.

Speaking with People about her new book, and the “betrayals” she mentions in them, asked how she overcame them, she maintained: “You have to stay true to yourself always, right?”

So what led to their divorce? Here is what both of them have shared.

In her book, Melinda isn’t afraid to declare: “Bill has publicly acknowledged that he wasn’t always faithful to me.”

Back in March 2020, Bill stepped down from the Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway boards, and though at the time it was said it was in an effort to dedicate more time to philanthropic priorities, it was later revealed that it came after he was investigated by an outside law firm hired by Microsoft board members over a past affair with an employee, after the staffer brought it to light in 2019.

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Still, in a statement at the time, a representative of the billionaire said: “There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably. Bill’s decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter. In fact, he had expressed an interest in spending more time on his philanthropy starting several years earlier.” The affair took place around the year 2000.

Also contributing to Melinda’s reasons to leave Bill was his murky relationship with notorious child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail in 2019. In her book, Melinda described articles documenting Bill’s several meetings with the sex trafficker as “deeply disturbing.”

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Earlier this year, Bill told the Wall Street Journal of his meetings with him: “In retrospect, I was foolish to spend any time with him. And he, sort of, got time with various people by spending time with other people,” adding: “So yes, I think I was quite stupid. I thought it would help me with global health philanthropy. In fact, it failed to do that, it was just a huge mistake.”

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Where do Melinda’s finances stand?

Bill, one of the world’s richest men, has a net worth of $107 billion, and following their divorce, Forbes reports that Melinda has a net worth of $30 billion. Moreover, the outlet estimates that the settlement from the 2021 divorce was $25 billion.

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Last May, she resigned from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which the former couple founded at the start of their marriage, and announced that she would go her own direction when it came to philanthropy. “The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy,” she said at the time, adding: “This is a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world — and those fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support.”

As for the settlement for that separation, she revealed: “Under the terms of my agreement with Bill, in leaving the foundation, I will have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families.”