Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, has ceased to be the largest single shareholder of the U.S. group, that place is now occupied by Steve Ballmer, former executive chairman of the group.
According to a statement posted on the regulator of the U.S. capital market Bill Gates sold 4.6 million shares, reducing its stake to 330.14 million securities. Steve Ballmer is now the largest single shareholder of Microsoft, which holds 333.250.000 of securities.
The company’s founder now has 4% of the equity of Microsoft group, while Ballmer owns 4.03% of shares.
Steve Ballmer retired in February but kept its equity portfolio. His replacement as president of the board of directors is Satya Nadella, who currently heads the group.
Bill Gates, who founded the company in 1975 with an old school mate Paul Allen, has sold 20 million shares per quarter over the last 12 years, according to a plan that he had previously defined. If the disposal of shares continues at this pace, Gates will no longer have any interest in the group in 2018, notes Reuters.
After 30 years ahead of Microsoft, Gates announced in mid 2008 that would end any executive function in the group, to which would dedicate “a third of his time” as a technology advisor. Additionally, the one that appears on the Forbes list as one of the richest men in the world has been devoted to philanthropy, having in 2000 with his wife created the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
About the Author: Daniel Trevisani
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