Weddings are events that celebrate love, in most cases. People come together because they feel a special affection for another person, but what happens when it ends? The separations arrive, together with the broken hearts, but it is not the only thing that changes, also the financial part. These are the most expensive divorces in history, and even millionaires don’t always get their happily ever after.
Unlike mortals, the divorces of businessmen, millionaires or celebrities are as controversial as they are exorbitant. That is, in legal separations, the amounts that are divided are millions of dollars. Such is the case of Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos: media cases and millions in between.
The most expensive divorces in history
1. Bill Gates and Melinda French
In 2021, the billionaire surprised by announcing that after 27 years of marriage he was separating from Melinda. According to Forbes, Bill gave his ex-wife $65.25 billion. Among the assets held by the former couple are yachts, shares, companies and a private plane.
“After much reflection and work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. We do not believe that we can continue to grow as a couple in the next phase of our lives,” said the billionaire at the time.
2. Jeff Bezos and Mackenzie Scott
In January 2019, the couple amicably separated. So the owner of Amazon gave Mackenzie 4% of the company, that is, about 35 million dollars after 25 years together. With this agreement, she catapulted herself as one of the richest women in the world.
The writer and now philanthropist is known for her generous donations to charity. The last was her in July 2022, when she donated two Beverly Hills mansions worth $55 million to support affordable housing initiatives for immigrants. According to Forbes, the fortune of Bezos’ ex-wife is currently $29.2 million.
3. Alec Wildenstein and Jocelyn Wildenstein
We go back in time to 1999, when French art dealer Alec Wildenstein and celebrity Jocelyn divorced. In accordance with Reuters, she received 2,500 billion dollars, plus an annual sum of 100 billion for 13 years, which gives a total of 3,800 billion. However, the judge ordered Jocelyn not to use that sum of money for cosmetic touch-ups, that is, plastic surgery.
4. Rupert Murdoch and Anna Torv
The media magnate, owner of the Fox News chain, The Times in London and The Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch divorced journalist Anna Torv in 2013, after maintaining a marriage for 31 years. According to what was reported, under the terms of the separation, Anna was awarded $1.7 billion, in addition to $110 million in cash. A few days after concluding the agreement (17 days), Murdoch remarried, now with Wndi Deng, 38 years his junior. He too divorced and remarried for the fourth time in 2016 with former model Jerry Hall.
5. Bernie Ecclestone and Slavica Ecclestone
In 2009 Formula One billionaire Bernie Ecclestone divorced Croatian former model Slavica. She filed for divorce after 24 years of marriage in 2008. Bernard Charles Ecclestone was 28 years older than the former model. According to the tycoon himself, he declared in 2010 to the Daily Mail, who gave his ex-wife a billion dollars. Although unofficial versions say that it was 1,200 billion dollars.
6. Kanye West and Kim Kardashian
The businesswoman and influencer, Kim Kardashian, is also on the list with her divorce from Kanye West. So, in 2022, the legal agreements for their separation were terminated. In the divorce papers, the former couple wanted joint custody of her four children: North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm.
In addition, the rapper pays 200,000 thousand dollars a month. He also became responsible for half of the children’s medical, educational and security expenses. But, here’s a difference, they did have a prenuptial agreement. This document calculates that the sum was valued at 1,500 million dollars.
Whether in business or in Hollywood, breaking up is expensive, and these are the costliest divorces in history.
Editorial Team The editorial team of EMPRENDEDOR.com, which for more than 27 years has worked to promote entrepreneurship.