WEF Opens Review of CEO Børge Brende After DOJ Documents Link Him to Jeffrey Epstein

The World Economic Forum has launched an internal review into its president and CEO, Børge Brende, after documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice linked him to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Files from last week's DOJ document release indicate Brende attended at least three business dinners with Epstein and exchanged emails and text messages. The Forum said Brende requested the review, supports it, and will remain in his roles as president and CEO of the Davos, Switzerland–based organization while the inquiry proceeds.

Forum statement: 'This decision underscores the Forum's commitment to transparency and maintaining its integrity,' the organization said, adding that Brende 'fully supports, and cooperates with, this review, having indeed requested it himself.'

World Economic Forum CEO Borge Brende, far left, participated in a session at the Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in 2023. Brende is under investigation by his employer for his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. File Photo by World Economic Forum/Michael Calabro/UPI

Brende, who served as Norway's foreign minister before taking the helm of the Forum in 2017, initially denied recent knowledge of Epstein as recently as November. After the documents were published, he acknowledged having known Epstein and told reporters he was 'completely unaware of Epstein's past and criminal activities' and that he would not have had contact with Epstein had he known of those crimes.

Politico quoted Brende as saying, 'I recognize that I could have conducted a more thorough investigation into Epstein's history, and I regret not doing so.'

Background

Jeffrey Epstein, a wealthy financier who owned a private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor for prostitution and became a registered sex offender in 2009. He was arrested on federal sex‑trafficking charges in July 2019 and died by suicide while in custody.

Timeline And Key Details

• Reported dinners between Brende and Epstein took place in 2018 and 2019, years after Epstein's 2008 guilty plea.
• Documents include emails and text-message exchanges showing communication between Brende and Epstein.
• In a 2018 email to former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, Epstein referred to Brende as a 'good friend.'

The Forum said the review is intended to establish the facts and reaffirm organizational standards. Officials have emphasized that the review is internal and that Brende is cooperating fully with the process.