Melinda gets millions in shares from Cascade

WASHINGTON: Cascade Investment, the holding company created by Bill Gates, transferred stock in two of Mexico’s largest companies to Melinda French Gates, bringing the total amount she’s received in the past few days to more than $2 billion.

Cascade moved stock worth more than $500 million in CocaCola Femsa and Grupo Televisa to her control, according to regulatory filings dated May 3, the same day the Gateses announced they were ending their 27-year marriage. Cascade shifted about $1.8 billion of shares in Canadian National Railway Co. and AutoNation Inc. this week to French Gates, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

Their separation is expected to involve a wealth transfer on a scale that’s only been seen in a few other divorces, though few details have yet emerged. It could also have ramifications for one of the most important philanthropic organizations on the planet. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given away more than $50 billion to support health care, education, gender equality and efforts to combat climate change.

Cascade transferred a stake worth about $120 million in Coca-Cola Femsa and a holding valued at about $386 million in Grupo Televisa to French Gates, according to Bloomberg calculations based on the filings.

Gates, the 65-year-old co-founder of Microsoft Corp., is worth $144.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. French Gates, 56, is a former Microsoft manager who’s gained international prominence co-running the foundation.