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Al Gore in line for $30m Apple windfall

Al Gore, the former US vice president, is in line for a $30m (£19m) windfall after triggering an Apple share package awarded to him by Steve Jobs a decade ago.

Al Gore, the former US vice president, is in line for a $30m (£19m) windfall after triggering an Apple share package awarded to him by Steve Jobs a decade ago.
Under the terms of the award, Mr Gore was given the right to buy 59,000 Apple shares for $7.475 each. The shares closed at $500 on Friday, meaning his investment has grown from $440,000 to $29.5m in the space of a decade. Credit: Photo: AP

Mr Gore, who is now reportedly richer than Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, triggered a share option package last week gifted to him by the founder of the iPhone and iPad maker, where he has sat on the board since 2003.

Under the terms of the award, Mr Gore was given the right to buy 59,000 Apple shares for $7.475 each. The shares closed at $500 on Friday, meaning his investment has grown from $440,000 to $29.5m in the space of a decade.

Mr Gore is free to sell the shares at any time.

Earlier this month, Forbes "conservatively" estimated that Mr Gore's net worth was at least $300m.

The estimate came after Al Jazeera bought Current TV, the cable channel founded by Mr Gore in 2005, in a deal worth an estimated $500m.

The deal brings Al Jazeera, which operates under the patronage of the emir of Qatar and his family, into closer competition with American news channels like CNN, MSNBC and Fox.