Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Ends Longstanding Microsoft Investment
In the first quarter of 2026, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation sold its remaining stock in Microsoft, completing its withdrawal from the software company.
According to media sources citing regulatory records, the foundation’s trust sold its final 7.7 million Microsoft shares, a position worth around USD 3.2 billion, or Rs 26,500 crore. The sale completes a staged withdrawal that started around two years ago, at which point the trust owned roughly 28.5 million Microsoft shares.
For many years, the foundation’s investment portfolio consisted primarily of Microsoft stock, which was donated by co-founder Bill Gates, who founded the business with Paul Allen in 1975. Later, billionaire Warren Buffett’s consistent contributions through Berkshire Hathaway strengthened the trust’s assets.
Microsoft Stake Once Accounted for 27% of Foundation Portfolio
Microsoft held around 27% of the foundation’s total interests at its height in 2022, highlighting the extent of its commitment to a single business. But once Gates stated this year that the foundation would deplete its entire endowment by 2045 rather than continue to function indefinitely like many conventional charitable trusts, the concentration became less viable.
According to Gates, the foundation intends to increase funding in the upcoming years. In the current year alone, the organization is anticipated to award donations of over USD 9 billion, or roughly Rs 74,700 crore.
The trust liquidated around 65% of its Microsoft holdings in the third quarter of 2025, which was the biggest decline. A partnership that had influenced the foundation’s finances since its founding came to an end when the last tranche was exited in early 2026.
According to estimations reported by US financial media, the Gates Foundation Trust’s investment portfolio is estimated to be worth USD 31.7 billion, or around Rs 2.63 lakh crore, following Microsoft’s exit.
