WEF chief Børge Brende resigns

Børge Brende steps down as chief executive of the World Economic Forum after an internal review examined his contacts with Jeffrey Epstein, following newly released US Justice Department emails.

According to Business Insider, the emails show Brende dined with Epstein three times in 2018 and 2019, including a September 2018 dinner at Epstein’s New York home on Brende’s 53rd birthday. Brende told Reuters earlier this month that he was “completely unaware” of Epstein’s past and criminal activity, though Epstein had been convicted in 2008 of procuring a minor for prostitution and later died in jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. Brende had as recently as November 2025 denied knowing Epstein, Business Insider reports.

The Forum’s co-chairs, André Hoffman and Larry Fink, said the independent review—made public earlier in February—found “no additional concerns beyond what has been previously disclosed,” yet Brende said his departure would allow the organisation to continue “without distractions.” In practice, the episode draws a line between the Forum’s brand management and its governance: Davos is not a state institution with statutory obligations, but a private convening platform whose product is access, credibility and the ability to host political and corporate power in the same rooms.

The released correspondence also illustrates why reputational risk is existential for such a platform. In one exchange cited by Business Insider, Epstein wrote that “Davos can really replace the UN,” suggesting a more permanent role for the annual gathering. That kind of language flatters the Forum’s self-image while simultaneously tying it to a figure whose notoriety now contaminates any institution he touched. When the value proposition is neutrality and discretion, the cost of ambiguity is paid in invitations, sponsorships and the willingness of public officials to appear on stage.

Brende led the WEF for more than eight years, during which Davos remained a fixture for chief executives and heads of government; this year’s speakers included US President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, Business Insider notes. The Forum said managing director Alois Zwinggi will serve as interim president and CEO.

Brende’s resignation comes even as the review cleared him of further undisclosed issues. The emails, however, remain public, and the Forum’s next Davos meeting will proceed under an interim leader with the same guest list and the same stage lights.