MacKenzie Scott Donates Billions, Says She Will Continue Until Her Fortune Is Empty

MacKenzie Scott’s philanthropy has been framed across multiple outlets as a sustained, high-volume effort that she pairs with a distinctive approach to how money is used.

“American philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has donated $45 million to The Trevor Project, one of the leading U”

Association STOP homophobie

Le Point describes her as “particulièrement impliquée dans ses activités philanthropiques” and says she has given “plus de 19 milliards de dollars” in “six ans,” while also noting that she signed The Giving Pledge after her divorce from Jeff Bezos.

Association STOP homophobie

In the same account, Le Point quotes Scott explaining: « J'ai une somme d'argent disproportionnée à partager. Mon approche de la philanthropie continuera d'être réfléchie. Cela prendra du temps, des efforts et des soins. Mais je n'attendrai pas. Et je continuerai jusqu'à ce que le coffre-fort soit vide. »

Fortune, meanwhile, argues that Scott’s giving is not a broad shift toward elite-university fundraising, pointing instead to the scale of her gifts to under-resourced institutions and the relative size of endowments at places like Harvard and Yale.

The Le Monde article similarly emphasizes her “selfless vision of philanthropy,” saying she “has given about $12 billion in three years to more than a thousand philanthropic organizations, according to a tally by The Wall Street Journal.”

Together, the sources portray a donor whose giving is both rapid and large, while also being tied to her stated philosophy about timing, care, and continued distribution.

A recurring theme in the coverage is that Scott’s giving is described as “unconditional” and designed to avoid strict constraints on how recipients spend.

Le Point says she “donne également sans exiger d'engagement strict sur l'utilisation des fonds par les associations” and contrasts that with “le modèle de la Fondation Bill et Melinda Gates.”

El Periódico

It then quotes Scott directly on why she does not impose conditions: « Parce que nous croyons que les équipes expérimentées en première ligne sauront mieux utiliser l'argent, nous les avons encouragées à le dépenser comme bon leur semble. Beaucoup ont rapporté que cette confiance augmentait considérablement l'impact du don. »

Le Point also includes another Scott quote about wealth and social structures: « Il ne fait aucun doute dans mon esprit que la richesse d'une personne est le produit d'un effort collectif et de structures sociales qui offrent des opportunités à certains et présentent des obstacles à de nombreux autres. »

Forbes México adds that Scott’s method is “one-off, unconditional donations to grassroots organizations,” and it notes that her giving announcement directs funds to “about 200 recognized organizations,” with a focus on “higher education” and “climate.”

In parallel, CNews with AFP describes her as “pledged to give half of her fortune to charities” and quotes Habitat for Humanity’s CEO Jonathan Reckford praising the gift as enabling “multigenerational impact.”

The sources describe multiple large donations by MacKenzie Scott to specific organizations, with details that vary by outlet and time period.

“Mackenzie Scott ha vuelto a marcar tendencia”

El Periódico

CNews with AFP reports that Habitat for Humanity announced a “latest donation, amounting to $436 million,” specifying that “$25 million would be directed to programs it runs across the United States” and that “the remaining $411 million would go to 84 affiliates spread across different states.”

It also quotes Jonathan Reckford saying the gift will enable “multigenerational impact,” and it situates the donation as part of Scott’s broader distribution of her fortune “by the hundreds of millions to charities.”

Le Point, meanwhile, describes a July 2020 burst in which she “verse plus d'un milliard de dollars en quelques mois à 116 associations américaines,” and it lists specific amounts such as “275 millions au planning familial américain” and “25 millions à Big Brothers Big Sisters of America,” including that the BBBS operational budget would rise “de 24 à plus de 52 millions.”

Forbes México reports that Scott’s annual philanthropic giving announcement totals “$7.2 billion,” lifting her lifetime giving to “$26 billion,” and it says the latest gifts were directed to “about 200 recognized organizations.”

El Periódico focuses on a different gift, saying Scott donated “70 millones de dólares” to “Meals on Wheals America,” describing it as a program where the organization can “destinar los fondos sin estrategias ni imposiciones externas del donante.”

The financial reporting in the sources ties Scott’s giving to her Amazon stake, her divorce settlement, and the way she manages donations through vehicles described as donor-advised funds.

Le Point states that after her divorce with Jeff Bezos, she “a conservé 4 % des actions d'Amazon” and says her fortune was “estimée à 35 milliards de dollars en 2019,” while also describing that her shares continued to grow, with her fortune “approche des 30 milliards de dollars aujourd'hui.”

Fortune

Forbes México provides additional detail, saying she received “approximately 400 million shares of the tech giant” as part of her 2019 divorce, and it reports that she has “already sold more than 75% of her shares—worth $52 billion if she had sold them immediately and $72 billion if she had kept them—in just six years.”

It also states that Forbes now estimates her net worth at “$30 billion,” below her peak in 2021 of “$59 billion,” and it explains a new assumption about how she sells Amazon shares.

Forbes México further describes her lack of a traditional private foundation and says she appears to be transferring Amazon shares to “donor-advised funds (DAFs),” adding that “donor-advised funds do not require a specific donation velocity nor nearly any disclosure.”

It also quotes Scott’s “until the safe is empty” line, saying that transferring Amazon shares to a DAF before selling them “also allows her to avoid capital gains taxes (23.8% at the federal level plus another 7% that Washington state enacted in 2023).”

The sources also show how Scott’s giving is positioned within broader debates about where philanthropy should go, and how her donations translate into rankings.

“Last year, billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott embarked on a giving spree, giving $740 million to 16 Historically Black Colleges and Universities”

Fortune

Fortune argues that Scott’s giving highlights a mismatch between donor instincts and institutional needs, writing that “Harvard and Yale don’t need your money” while noting that “The eight Ivy League universities collectively hold more than $200 billion in endowment wealth.”

Le Point

It also states that Scott “embarked on a giving spree, giving $740 million to 16 Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” and it contrasts that with the claim that “All 100-plus HBCUs together manage just $4 billion to $5 billion.”

Forbes México, by contrast, frames Scott’s scale in terms of national generosity rankings, saying her annual giving announcement totals “$7.2 billion” and that it “makes her one of the three most generous donors in the United States,” while also stating that “Two much wealthier men, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, are the only Americans who have donated more.”

Le Point similarly says that Forbes ranks her as “la 5e philanthrope la plus généreuse en 2025,” and it adds that she is “la 5e philanthrope la plus généreuse en 2025.”

Association STOP homophobie focuses on a specific LGBTQ+ youth mental health donation, reporting Scott’s “record-breaking $45 million donation to The Trevor Project” and quoting that the CEO Jaymes Black called the support “transformational.”