Mackenzie Scott, ex-wife of Jeff Bezos, donates $436 million to an NGO that helps the homeless

American philanthropist Mackenzie Scott, the ex-wife of billionaire and ex-Amazon chief Jeff Bezos, has donated $436 million to the organization Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for the poor, the organization announced on Tuesday.

Habitats for Humanity said $25 million will go to programs it runs across the United States to help those who need it most get decent housing, and the remaining $411 million will go to 84 affiliates in various state locations.

The money obtained will also be used to support the work of NGOs around the world, in particular helping Ukrainian refugees who fled their country after the invasion of Russia.

“With this donation, Habitat is well positioned to effectively advocate for the systemic and societal changes needed to improve equitable access to affordable housing,” Jonathan Rickford, President of Habitat said in a statement.

Scott, whose fortune Forbes magazine estimates at $49.3 billion, has pledged to donate at least half of her fortune to charity.

It has already made public donations to several hundred associations working in various fields (food banks, financial and credit services for disadvantaged communities, legal groups fighting discrimination).

Much of Scott’s fortune, 51, stems from the economic fallout from her divorce from Jeff Bezos, which was finalized in July 2019 and saw her earn the equivalent of $38 billion in Amazon stock at the time.

Its value increased significantly with the increase in the title of giant online trading on Wall Street.

Last December, Ms. Scott, who is also a novelist, indicated in a blog post that she would stop disclosing the amounts of her donations, preferring to let recipients do so if they wished.

Last week, the Girls and Boys Clubs Youth Movement of America announced that it had received $281 million from Ms. Scott.