Foreign News
Bill Gate has admitted to having an affair with a Microsoft employee 20 years ago
Bill Gate has Admitted to having an Affair with a Microsoft Employee 20 years ago
NewsReport Nigeria | May 17, 2021
Bill Gate has admitted to having an affair with a Microsoft employee 20 years ago, but he resigned before the investigation could be completed.
NewsReport Nigeria gathered that after he “attempted to initiate an intimate relationship” with a coworker in 2009, the company launched an investigation.
After being informed in 2019 of his attempt to start a romantic relationship with an employee almost two decades ago, Microsoft launched an investigation into co-founder Bill Gate’s involvement with that person’s online information learned.
The board looked into the matter and conducted a “thorough investigation” with the help of an outside law firm, according to the software giant. Because the gates had stepped down, the investigation could not come to a conclusion, Microsoft said.
“In the latter half of 2019, Microsoft received a concern that Bill Gates attempted to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the 2000s,” Microsoft said in a statement. “ A Board committee looked into the issue, with the help of an outside law firm, and conducted a thorough investigation.
Microsoft provided extensive support to the employee who raised the concern throughout the investigation.”
According to Dow Jones, Microsoft’s board of directors found Gates’ involvement with the female employee to be inappropriate and decided last year that he had to step down from the board, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.
Microsoft did not provide any additional information about the investigation.
In March of last year, the billionaire announced that he was stepping down from the board of directors to devote more time to philanthropy. Gates co-founded the software company in 1975 and served as its CEO until 2000, the same year he established his foundation, and then as chairman until February 2014.
‘An affair,’ as the phrase goes.
Gate’s decision to leave the board, according to a spokesperson, has nothing to do with a romantic relationship with an employee.
“There was an affair almost 20 years ago that ended amicably,” she explained, adding that his decision to leave the board had nothing to do with it.
The belated investigation into the affair came at a time that was marked by a groundswell of women and Me-Too conversation in the broader industry. Microsoft has also put in place and overhauled processes for investigating allegations since 2000, with the goal of making them stronger, according to the company.
Intel Chief Executive Officer Brian Krzanich resigned after the board was confirmed he had a consensual relationship with a subordinate, even though that relationship had ended years before and predated his appointment to the top job at the company.
The board conducted investigations internally and via external counsel to confirm the violation of the company’s policies and made the announcement in June 2018.
Gate and Melinda French Gates announced their divorce earlier this month after 27 years of marriage.
Several reports, including those that emerged over the weekend, said she had raised concerns over his dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The New York Times had reported in 2019 that Gates had met with Epatein several times, and once stayed late at his New York townhouse.
Epstein had died in jail two months prior while awaiting trial on federal charges related to sex trafficking.
Gate’s spokeswoman denied the reports. The “characterization of his meetings with Espein and others about philanthropy is inaccurate,” she said. “The rumors and speculations surrounding Gates’ divorce are coming increasingly absurd.”
While Gates’ dealing with Epstein wasn’t a part of the scope of the Microsoft investigation, It was discussed by some board members, according to the person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.
Stock Transfer
The split also put a spotlight on the Gates fortune, valued at about $144 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, as well as their foundation.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest of its kind on the planet. Within more than 1600 employees and offices around the world, it has already distributed more than $50 billion since its inception to cause like vaccine development and women’s empowerment.
Last week, Cascade Investment, the investment company created by Gates, transferred stock in Deere & Co. to his wife, bringing the total amount she’s received since they announced their divorce to more than $3 billion.
The investment vehicles transferring about 2.25 million shares worth about $851 million, according to a regulatory filing. That followed similar disclosures tied to Mexican companies Coca-Cola Femsa and Grupo Televisa and about $1.8 billion of stock in Canadian National Railway and AutoNation.
