MacKenzie Scott Doubles Initial Pledge, Donates $640 Million to 361 Nonprofits

Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott plans to donate $640 million to 361 small non-profit organizations, as announced on Tuesday. This significant contribution follows an "Open Call" for applications initiated by Scott and Lever for Change. Notably, this first round of donations from Yield Giving is double the amount initially pledged by Scott. 

Following her divorce from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Scott committed to giving away a substantial portion of her wealth and launched "Yield Giving," a database of her charitable contributions.

MacKenzie Scott’s Open Call Campaign

Following Scott's open call, approximately 6,353 nonprofit organizations submitted applications, according to Lever for Change, which oversaw the campaign. Initially, the philanthropist had pledged a grant of $1 million to each chosen organization.

However, following a second round of evaluation, Scott ultimately decided to provide more than double the originally planned amount. "The donor team decided to expand the awardee pool and the award amount," Lever for Change stated on its website.

Out of the 361 nonprofits that received funding, approximately 279 attained top scores from an external review panel and were granted $2 million each. The remaining 82 organizations, recognized for their remarkable efforts, were placed in a second tier and received $1 million each.

The announcement highlighted that these nonprofits, hailing from 38 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, are dedicated to fostering substantive improvement in the well-being of individuals and families.

The grants promise to have a profound impact on numerous recipients. Gender Justice, an organization committed to advancing gender equality, received the largest one-time gift in its history with a $2 million grant.

Megan Peterson, the executive director of Gender Justice, expressed gratitude, stating, "This Open Call award helps us take our fight for justice and equity to the next level, continuing our work to dismantle the legal, structural, and cultural barriers that contribute to gender inequity."

Scott’s Philanthropic Contributions

According to Yield Giving, Scott and her network have generously donated over $17 billion to more than 2,300 non-profit organizations. Records show that in 2023 alone, she contributed $2.15 billion, followed by over $3.8 billion in 2022 and more than $6 billion in 2020.

Her organization also made significant donations, including $436 million to Habitat for Humanity and $84.5 million to Girl Scouts of the USA, marking the largest-ever donation from a single individual.

Remaining Donation Potential 

Upon the announcement of their divorce after 25 years of marriage, Forbes estimated Bezos' worth to be nearly $131 billion. While Scott could have been entitled to half of his fortune, primarily acquired during their marriage, she opted for approximately 4% or 20 million shares of Amazon instead.

This decision led to her accumulating a fortune amounting to billions of dollars, peaking at $53 billion in 2021.

Currently, Scott's estimated net worth stands at $36.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. Despite her significant donations, including the recent $640 million in grants, it is evident that she still possesses substantial resources available for philanthropic endeavors.

Moreover, Scott's approach to donations differs from Bezos'. While Bezos, along with his fiancée Lauren Sánchez, recently announced a substantial $50 million donation each to actress Eva Longoria and retired Admiral Bull McRaven, his ex-wife tends to distribute her wealth in smaller increments to hundreds of smaller non-profit organizations, following a more discreet and widespread philanthropic strategy.