The world’s wealthiest man, Jeff Bezos, announced a divorce from his wife of 25 years, MacKenzie Bezos, on Twitter on Wednesday morning.
“We want to make people aware of a development in our lives,” the couple said in a joint statement.
“As our family and close friends know, after a long period of loving exploration and trial separation, we have decided to divorce and continue our shared lives as friends.”
The couple has four children.
Bezos is the founder and largest shareholder of Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer.
Related: Amazon, America’s Second Largest Private Employer, Announces Pay Hike
With an estimated worth about $137 billion, according to Bloomberg, Bezos is also the owner of the left-leaning Washington Post, which has been vehemently and relentlessly critical of President Donald Trump ever since he won the presidential election of 2016.
Bezos bought The Post in 2013 in a $250 million deal.
World's richest man Jeff Bezos divorces pic.twitter.com/r6zyhwWIco
— Business Resources (@BusinessRes) January 9, 2019
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos announced this morning that he and his wife, MacKenzie, have decided to divorce after 25 years of marriage. https://t.co/eQyYKg7Nrw pic.twitter.com/WQyplI7IMs
— Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) January 9, 2019
Washington state, where the Bezos family lives, is a community property state. That means that any wealth made during their marriage could be split equally between the two. https://t.co/jnNHNpVso2
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) January 9, 2019
The Seattle-based publicly traded behemoth runs retail websites Zappos and Audible, serves as a platform for third-party vendors, and provides cloud computing services.
In 2017, Amazon reported revenue of $178 billion, according to Bloomberg.
News of the couple’s split has been exploding on social media, with some already anticipating the largest divorce settlement of all time.
Elizabeth Economou is a former CNBC staff writer and adjunct professor.
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