After one of the largest ever divorce settlements ever, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, the world’s second-richest man, plans to step down this summer as CEO of his company.
Bezos, 57, plans to serve instead as executive chairman and follow his innovation passion, he told employees in an email.
Amazon was founded in 1995 as an online book store in Bezos’ garage. It later morphed into a mega online retailer with a global reach and a market cap of more than $1.673 trillion.
“As much as I still tap dance into the office, I’m excited about this transition,” Bezos said in a statement. “Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it’s consuming. When you have a responsibility like that, it’s hard to put attention on anything else.”
Bezos’ net worth skyrocketed with his company’s fortunes, reaching a high of $200 billion in 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic forced people into quarantine and online orders soared from Amazon and other online stores.
Bezos is worth an estimated $184 billion, according to CNBC.
Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services, will become the company’s next CEO, Bezos said.
“I am excited to announce that this Q3 I’ll transition to Executive Chair of the Amazon Board and Andy Jassy will become CEO,” he wrote.
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Over recent years and months leading up to the announcement, Bezos branched out from Amazon to become the owner of the Washington Post and Whole Foods. He has also shed his shareholding in the company he founded, selling as much as $10 billion worth of Amazon stocks so far in 2021.
His shareholding in Amazon has dropped from as high as 80 million shares to less than 50 million shares – or about 10 percent. He transferred 19.7 million shares, a quarter of the company, to his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott in their April 2019 divorce settlement.
Amazon is facing multiple critiques from U.S. government antitrust probes over its tax and labor practices.
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