Borge Brende has resigned from his roles as the president and CEO of the World Economic Forum (WEF), following revelations of his links with the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister who became president of the WEF in 2017, announced his departure on Thursday, joining the ranks of prominent figures to have left their jobs or faced criminal investigations after their contacts with Epstein were revealed in files released by the US Department of Justice last month.
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“After careful consideration, I have decided to step down as President and CEO of the World Economic Forum. My time here, spanning 8-1/2 years, has been profoundly rewarding,” Brende said in a statement, which made no mention of Epstein.
“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’s departure came several weeks after the WEF, organiser of the annual Davos summit, launched an independent investigation into his relationship with Epstein, following revelations in the files that the Norwegian had three business dinners with the financier and had also communicated with him via email and text message.
Epstein was convicted of procuring a minor for prostitution in 2008, spending about a year in prison before his release.
His contacts with a network of wealthy and influential figures continued in the wake of his conviction until an investigation into the wealthy financier was reopened in 2019. Epstein died by suicide in prison that year while facing charges of sex trafficking underage girls.
Dinners, emails
Brende said in a statement earlier this month that during a visit to New York in 2018, he received an invitation from former Norwegian politician Terje Rod-Larsen to join him for dinner with several other leaders, plus “someone who was presented to me as an American investor, Jeffrey Epstein”.
“The following year, I attended two similar dinners with Epstein, alongside other diplomats and business leaders. These dinners, and a few emails and SMS messages, were the extent of my interactions with him,” he said.
“I was completely unaware of Epstein’s past and criminal activities.”
He said that had he known about Epstein’s background, he would have declined any contact with the convicted sex offender, adding that he regretted not having conducted a more thorough investigation into his past.
Investigation concluded
In a separate statement, Andre Hoffmann and Larry Fink, co-chairs of the WEF, said the independent review conducted by outside counsel into Brende’s ties with Epstein had concluded.
The findings stated there were no additional concerns beyond what had been previously disclosed, it added.
The co-chairs said the WEF’s Alois Zwinggi will serve as interim president and CEO, and that the forum’s board of trustees would oversee the leadership transition, including a plan to identify a permanent replacement.
Arrests and resignations
Epstein had ties to a long list of business and political leaders, whose links to the disgraced figure have now come under close scrutiny, resulting in arrests and resignations.
In Norway, Thorbjorn Jagland, former prime minister and former secretary-general of the Council of Europe, has been charged with “aggravated corruption” amid an investigation into his connections to Epstein, while Rod-Larsen and his wife Mona Juul, both diplomats, have also been charged.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit, the wife of Crown Prince Haakon, heir to Norway’s throne, has also come under heavy scrutiny following the revelation of her close friendship with Epstein, issuing a public apology for her long association with him.
In the UK, prominent figures including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – formerly Prince Andrew – and Peter Mandelson, the former diplomat, minister, and adviser to multiple Labour Party prime ministers, have been arrested over alleged crimes linked to their relationships with Epstein.
In France, financial crimes prosecutors have opened an investigation into former Culture Minister Jack Lang, while in Slovakia, Miroslav Lajcak, former president of the UN General Assembly, resigned as security adviser to the country’s prime minister amid growing criticism over his correspondence with Epstein, uncovered in the files.
A growing number of prominent business and academic figures have also left their posts after their ties to Epstein were revealed.
