World’s third-richest man Bill Gates, who had announced his divorce with wife Melinda after 27 years of marriage, had a romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee.
According to reports, Bill Gates had stepped down from Microsoft in the year 2020 after the board sought an inquiry into the billionaire’s affair.
“Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire’s prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate,” the report said.
It further added that this was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably.
Earlier, despite calling it quits, the CEO of Microsoft and his wife had decided to continue working together.
An official tweet by the billionaire announced the couple’s divorce which states: “After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage.”
“We no longer believe we can grow as a couple in this next phase of our lives,” he added in the statement.
— Bill Gates (@BillGates) May 3, 2021
The couple, who tied the knot in 1994, asked for privacy. They asked the court to not disclose details regarding their divorce, according to media reports.
Aged 65, Bill Gates founded Microsoft in 1975. His net worth stands at an estimated $130.5 billion and he has so far granted $35.8 billion worth of Microsoft stock to the couple’s foundation.
Last year, Gates announced to resign from Microsoft’s board to focus full-time on his work as the foundation’s co-chair.
Melinda Gates, 56, serves as the foundation’s co-chair and is the founder of Pivotal Ventures.
Previously, the oldest daughter of billionaire tech mogul Bill Gates, Jennifer Gates had decided to get married to her Egyptian boyfriend Nayel Nassar.
