In a surprising development, billionaire couple Bill and Melinda Gates announced that they have decided to divorce each other after 27 years of marriage, saying ‘we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple’. The duo released an official statement on Twitter confirming the same and said, “After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. We have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives.”
In her divorce petition, Melinda Gates described her marriage to former Microsoft CEO as 'irretrievably broken'. The divorce petition also revealed that Melinda did not sign a prenuptial agreement with Bill Gates, who is currently the fourth richest person in the world .
The documents, which were filed by Melinda, surfaced after Jennifer Gates, the eldest daughter of Gateses took to social media to reveal that their family has been going through a 'challenging stretch of time'.
The 25-year-old Jennifer revealed about the divorce announcement on Instagram on Monday afternoon, writing: "I'm still learning how to best support my own process and emotions as well as my family members at this time and am grateful for the space to do so."
Jennifer is the oldest of three children of Bill and Melinda. The couple also have 21-year-old son Rory and 18-year-old daughter Phoebe.
Bill and Melinda posted the same joint statement about their divorce on Twitter, which read: "After a great deal of thought and a lot of work, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives. We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue to work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life."
