MacKenzie Scott Has Given Away A Stunning Amount Of Her Fortune

MacKenzie Scott became $38 billion richer after she divorced Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2019. According to CNET, Scott's historic divorce settlement came after Bezos transferred 4% of his Amazon shares to her. Undoubtedly, Scott has made excellent use of her fortune by donating substantial sums to charity. According to Scott's Giving Pledge letter, her charitable spirit inspired her to take a philanthropic approach to spending her fortune. "In addition to whatever assets life has nurtured in me, I have a disproportionate amount of money to share," said Scott. "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."

It's safe to say that Scott has more than honored her pledge over the years. Per her Medium post, the first year after Scott's divorce, she donated over $4 billion to 384 charitable organizations — including Goodwill, Lincoln University, and Golden Harvest Food Bank. "Some are filling basic needs: food banks, emergency relief funds, and support services for those most vulnerable," wrote Scott. "Others are addressing long-term systemic inequities that have been deepened by the crisis: debt relief, employment training, credit and financial services." However, that was just the beginning of Scott's plan to give away her entire fortune. While she's already given away billions of dollars, here's exactly how much Scott has given back as part of her pledge. 

Mackenzie Scott is burning through her divorce settlement from Jeff Bezos at record speed. According to an April 2023 article by Forbes, Scott has gifted over $14 billion to thousands of charities since she started her historic charitable streak. Yield Giving — Scott's public database detailing her donations by company and amount — gives the public full access to where she's been putting her cash. Of the 16,000 donations, Scott gave millions to causes like Crushing Public Schools, Foundation for Amazon Sustainability, and Boys & Girls Club of Whittier, which have received $4.5 million, $10 million, and $2.5 million, respectively.

In March 2022, Scott gave Planned Parenthood $275 million, marking the non-profit's largest donation from a single entity since it was established. "We are incredibly grateful for Ms. Scott's extraordinary philanthropic investment in Planned Parenthood, as a critical part of the public health infrastructure," said Planned Parenthood President Alexis McGill Johnson in a statement. "There is no question that we are living through a crisis for sexual and reproductive health and rights in this country," added Johnson.

Mackenzie Scott's gift to Planned Parenthood was the organization's largest gift of all time, but it wasn't her largest gift. Since Scott's actually worth more today — 39.3 billion — since divorcing Bezos, per Forbes, it's not surprising that she quickly found a way to outdo herself. That same month, Scott gave Habitat for Humanity International and its U.S affiliates a whopping $436 million dollars, according to AP News. "We could not be more excited to get the gift at a time when, in some ways, the state of housing affordability is the worst that it has been in modern times," said Habitat For Humanity CEO Johnathan Reckford in a statement.

In a separate press release, Habitat For Humanity further thanked Scott for her hefty contribution. "This incredibly generous gift will allow us to dramatically increase capacity and implement programs that will have a multi-generational impact on communities around the U.S. and our global mission for many years to come," said Reckford. He also claimed that Scott's gift would help them to continue to be advocates in the affordable housing realm.