Bezos Sells $737M in Amazon Shares Amid Market Rise

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, recently sold 3.3 million shares of the company, generating approximately $737 million. This transaction is part of a pre-arranged trading plan, known as a 10b5-1 plan, which he submitted in March. This plan allows for the sale of up to 25 million shares of Amazon stock. The sale comes at a time when the U.S. stock market has seen a general increase, with Amazon's stock price rising by more than 8% since March.

At 61 years old, Bezos is currently the third wealthiest person in the world, with a net worth of $241.4 billion. He frequently uses 10b5-1 trading plans to sell his shares, having sold 75 million shares worth $13.6 billion through such plans last year. These plans enable company insiders to sell shares at predetermined times, providing a level of transparency and reducing the potential for insider trading allegations.

Since 2002, Bezos has sold approximately $44 billion worth of Amazon shares. His purchases of the company's stock have been infrequent, with his first buyback occurring two years ago. Bezos often sells his Amazon shares to fund his aerospace company, Blue Origin, which he founded in 2000. In January, Blue Origin successfully launched its new flagship rocket into orbit, but a month later, the company laid off about 10% of its workforce to cut costs.

This year, Bezos has donated nearly 930,000 shares to non-profit organizations. In March, he announced a donation of shares worth approximately $60 million to an undisclosed charitable organization. In May, he donated shares worth about $125 million, and in June, he donated shares worth $5 million. Bezos typically contributes to his Bezos Earth Fund, which has committed $10 billion to combat climate change, and his Day One Fund, a $2 billion philanthropic initiative focused on homelessness and early childhood education. Over the past few years, he has also established the $100 million Bezos Courage and Civility Award to support philanthropists like Dolly Parton and Van Jones.