World Economic Forum head Børge Brende said Thursday that he is stepping down after facing pressure over his contacts with the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister, said in a statement that he had decided “after careful consideration” to step down as president and chief executive of the forum, known for its annual January summit in the Swiss Alpine resort of Davos.
“I am grateful for the incredible collaboration with my colleagues, partners, and constituents, and I believe now is the right moment for the Forum to continue its important work without distractions,” Brende said in a statement released by the WEF.
The US Justice Department has released more than 3 million pages of documents relating to Epstein, who died by suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
Brende was Norway’s foreign minister from 2013-2017 and is one of several prominent Norwegians who have faced scrutiny following the latest release of Epstein files.
He didn't refer directly to that controversy in Thursday's statement, but the WEF announced earlier this month that it was opening an internal review into Brende to determine his relationship with Epstein after files indicated the two had dined together several times and exchanged messages.
Brende told Norwegian broadcaster NRK at the time that he was cooperating with the investigation, that he only met Epstein in business settings and that he had been unaware of Epstein’s criminal background.
WEF co-chairs André Hoffmann and Larry Fink said in a statement that “the independent review conducted by outside counsel has concluded. The findings stated that there were no additional concerns beyond what has been previously disclosed.”
They said that Alois Zwinggi will serve as the forum's interim president and CEO, and the forum's Board of Trustees would oversee the leadership transition, including a plan to identify a permanent successor.
Brende's resignation follows the departure last year of the WEF's founder and longstanding chair Klaus Schwab after he came under pressure from a whistleblower alleging misconduct.
The WEF subsequently said an internal investigation had found no evidence of material wrongdoing by Schwab.
