The World Economic Forum is investigating its founder Klaus Schwab, accused of using the money and luxury properties of the forum for personal purposes

Schwab resigned after the Board of Directors of the forum has announced that he is investigating the accusations of integrity warnings who say he was using the luxury properties of the forum for personal purposes and that he and his wife, had serious deviations from the Ethics.

The anonymous letter was sent last week to the Board of Directors of the forum and raised concerns about the governance of the forum and culture at work. The warriors wrote that the Schwab family mixed personal business with the resources of the forum without proper supervision.

There are also charges that Klaus Schwab would have asked the junior employees to withdraw thousands of dollars from ATMs on his behalf and used the forum funds to pay for private hotels. He also claimed that his wife Hilde, a former employee of the forum, scheduled “significant” meetings financed by the forum to justify luxury holiday trips at the organization's expense.

Klaus Schwab denied the accusations he said will challenge them in a trial.

The Board of Directors has decided to open an investigation during an emergency meeting on Easter Sunday. Schwab opted to resign immediately from the position of president.

The Schwab family declared, through a spokesman, that he denies any accusation. In order to protect their reputation, Klaus Schwab intends to open a trial against anyone who is behind the anonymous letter and “any person who spreads these untruths,” said the spokesman.

Whenever Schwab paid the forum for massage at a hotel during the trip, he always reimbursed the forum money, the spokesman said.

In a statement, the forum stated that his board of directors has unanimously supported the decision to initiate an independent investigation, the decision being taken after consulting an external legal adviser.

The forum said that they take “these accusations seriously, but they remain unwanted and will wait for the outcome of the investigation to comment on.”

The letter also raises concerns about how Klaus Schwab treated women employed and how under his leadership, cases of sexual harassment and other discriminatory behaviors have remained unchanged.

“We feel obliged to share a comprehensive account of the systemic governance failures and the abuse of power that have taken place over many years under the authority of Klaus Schwab,” it is said in the letter, which is signed by “current and former employees of the forum”.

The trust of the Board of Directors in and Schwab has been damaged during the last year, some of the participants in the discussions said.

After receiving the warning letter, the audit and risk committee of the Board of Directors decided on the weekend that he would open an independent investigation on the charges.

A high accusation in the letter is the use by the Schwab family of Villa Mundi, a luxury property purchased before the forum pandemic, near the headquarters of the Geneva organization.

Villa Mundi is a large -wide modernist house, built in the 1950s, overlooking Lake Geneva. He has been renovated for several years and has been opened as a center for meetings and conferences in 2023.

The letter also claims that Hilde Schwab has a close control over the use of the building and that it is understood that parts of the property are reserved for the family's private access. The Schwab family denies the statement. The letter also shows that the forum has paid about $ 30 million for the purchase of property and another $ 20 million to renovate it.

Schwab spokesman said that the renovations of the house, which were expensive because of the need to maintain the historical characteristics, increased the value of the property. The spokesman added that the Schwab family lives near Villa Mundi and used the villa only for forum events.

During the weekend, Schwab told the council members that the accusations of the whistleblowers are unfair and inaccurate and asked for the right to take a word, he refused.

Schwab gave up the pension of 5 million Swiss francs in a sign of good faith.

The Council named Peter Brabeck-Eletmathe, former CEO Nestlé, as interim president and created a selection committee of the future president.