Divorce Ends Hedge Fund’s Automatic Gifts to Big U.K. Charity

The break-up of Christopher Hohn and Jamie Cooper-Hohn, reputed to be Britain’s biggest philanthropic couple, has ended an arrangement by which his hedge fund disbursed hundreds of millions of dollars to her charity for children, The New York Times reports.

The Children’s Investment Fund, founded by Mr. Hohn in 2004, was structured to donate a portion of its fees to the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, which supports health and anti-hunger projects in the developing world. Led by Ms. Cooper-Hohn, the foundation is one of Britain’s largest charities, with $4.6-billion in assets. It has received $1.9-billion from the fund, known as TCI, including a $787-million gift last June.

According to regulatory filings in Britain, TCI is no longer contractually obligated to make contributions to the charity, although it may continue to do so on a discretionary basis. The change was set in motion in 2012 when the couple separated but was disclosed only this year. The divorce case is now in court.