Eric Schmidt 'selling $1.5billion in Google shares so he can divorce his wife

Chairman of Google Eric Schmidt and his wife Wendy Schmidt are set to have the second most expensive divorce in history

An aerial view of Schmidt's $20million Montecito mansion last August as it was being set up for Kim Kardashian's wedding

Schmidt paid a reported $72million for the 195-foot megayacht Oasis, pictured here

He reportedly cheated on his wife with at least three other women.

But now Eric Schmidt’s infidelity could cost him dearly amid claims he is heading for a divorce costing up to $1.5billion - the second most expensive in history.

The Google executive chairman is planning to sell 2.4million of his shares in the company to help pay for his split with wife Wendy as he continues a year and half long liaison with Manhattan beauty Lisa Shields.

Schmidt is looking towards a ‘transition and an amicable separation and settlement’ with the mother of his two children, but needs the extra cash to pay for it according to the New York Post.

If it all goes to his wife it would mean Schmidt, the 136th richest man in the world, would be giving away a quarter of his $6.2billion fortune to Wendy, to whom he has been married for 13 years.

During that time, Schmidt has overseen Google as it has become one of the biggest companies on Earth with annual profits of $9.7billion.

Filings last week showed that the 56-year-old intends to diversify his investments by selling the Google stocks.

A source said: ‘There are many reasons why he’s selling shares, mostly business reasons, but he’s also working towards a transition and an amicable separation and settlement with his wife.

They are both very private, so they’re quietly dividing up assets without drawing attention.

‘There’s been no paperwork filed.’

If the divorce goes through then Schmidt’s property empire would be among the assets up for division including his $20million mansion with four acres of land in Montecito, California he bought from U.S. TV show host Ellen Degeneres in 2007.

The site has landscaped gardens, a tennis court, a swimming pool and spa, a 5,000 square foot main house with four bedrooms and six bathrooms.

Millions of viewers were treated to an inside look at the Montecito property when Kim Kardashian rented it for her wedding last year.

Schmidt also has a mansion home in Nantucket in Massachusetts where he and his wife used to spend their summers in addition to a home in Atherton, near Google's Silicon Valley headquarters.

Schmidt's home in Atherton is worth $3.7million and has five bedrooms and three-and-a-half bathrooms covering a total of 4,840 sq ft. The neighbours include actress Shirley Temple and Grateful Dead singer Bob Weir.

Schmidt also owns the 195-foot super yacht Oasis which he bought for $72.3million.

The boat its said to be one of the ‘highest spec yachts ever built’ with its own pool and gym that can be converted into a disco.

The divorce would also shed a light on the exact nature of Schmidt’s marriage, which has been the subject of speculation for years.

Schmidt’s current girlfriend is Council on Foreign Relations executive Lisa Shields, 46, who he has been seeing for a year-and-a-half.

The two were seen together last summer in the Hamptons and he has bought her a Dutch Warmblood show-jumping horse as a token of his affection.

Schmidt and Shields were seen cruising on Oasis in the Caribbean and the South of France last summer.

Shields, a divorced mother, used to be a producer at ABC News and was linked to Andrew Cuomo shortly before he began dating Sandra Lee.

He and his wife reportedly had an open relationship and he has been linked to a string of other female journalistic high fliers in the past.

Among them is Marcy Simon, who worked as a producer at WCMH-TV in Columbus, Ohio, and is now in PR.

Another of his mistresses was former CNBC correspondent Kate Bohner, who he reportedly requested to remove a blog that she had written featuring details of their relationship.

Schmidt stepped down as chief executive and chairman after ten years in the role last April and was given a $100million parting gift.

Wendy Schmdit has a master's in journalism from Berkeley and has played a prominent role in the Eric Schmidt Family Foundation, which campaigns for responsible use of natural resources.

The most expensive divorce in history was between media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his wife Anna, which cost him a reported $1.7billion.

Currently the second most expensive was between Formula 1 tycoon Bernie Ecclestone and his model wife Slavicia which was a reported $1.2 billion.

A Google spokesman said: ‘The sale is part of a standard selling procedure to allow for diversification.

Divorce lawyer Ayesha Vardag said that Schmidt could potentially lose even more than quarter of his wealth as under California law anything earned during a marriage is split 50 / 50.

She said: 'The principle is known as community property and it is fairly cut and dried - anything earned by either party during the marriage is split down the middle.

The biggest thing that will be argued about in a divorce like this is not so much the proportion of a husband's money but what is in the pot.

'Liquidity will be a big issue and he will either have to borrow against the value of his stocks in Google or sell them, which would be destabilising for him and the company.

I would be advising Mr Schmidt to get a realistic assessment about the worth of Google whilst trying to make the assessment it as conservative as possible - and keep things civilised.

'If he has a pre-nup, which are valid in California, it will significantly limit the amount his wife is entitled to.'