The founder of the World Economic Forum (WEF), Klaus Svab, is facing serious complaints about arbitrary management, inappropriate behavior towards working women and the costs of hundreds of thousands of dollars for personal trips and luxurious benefits, according to preliminary findings.

The finding, based on testimonies and internal documents, threatens to shade Schbab’s long -standing course as a leading figure in the Davos forum.

The investigation began in April, following a complaint by a whistleblower, ordered by the WEF Board of Directors, and brings to light a series of incidents, including an email allegedly sent by Klaus Svab to a female senior, late June 2020, ” – A phrase deemed to be implied and possibly inappropriate by the researchers.

Through his spokesman, Klaus Svab rejected the findings in total, defending his 55th year as head and public figure of the forum. He stressed that he always treated women with respect and that both he and his wife did not benefit financially from their roles to the organization, in which they dedicated, as he said, their lives.

The case threatens to sharpen the rift between Claus Svab and the members of the Board of Directors, who seek to chart a new course for the World Economic Forum without the man who turned it into a global institution, known mainly for the annual Meeting of Davos and Davos.

Claus Svab resigned Easter and no longer has an official role in the organization. However, an internal research reveals serious complaints against him, which threaten to tarnish his legacy as a man who led the forum for decades, next to world leaders and powerful CEOs.

According to the researchers, witness testimonies revealed that Claus Svab treated the organization as a “feud” personnel, systematically tolerate harassment and discrimination phenomena, and often resorted to intimidation and psychological pressure to impose its decisions.

The researchers also reported limited supervision by the Board of Directors in relation to contested travel and other expenses. Svab and his wife, Hilde Svab, were paying more than $ 1.1 million for travel, most of which covered Hilde’s first -class flights to accompany Svab on forum trips, although he had no official role in the missions.

In addition, researchers have identified travel costs of about $ 63,000 for destinations such as Venice, Miami, Seychelles and Morocco, with no sufficient evidence to substantiate the professional nature of travel. The latest of these trips took place in Morocco, between late December 2024 and early January 2025.

According to the findings, Svab is alleged to have received gifts that violate the forum’s internal policy, including a set of Russian tea, tiffany cufflinks and fur. They were also charged 14 massage in hotels, either through his corporate card or through his existing cards; then Svab covered about half of these expenses. He states that he always asked for the costs to be personally charged.

The Law Firm Homburger presented the preliminary findings to members of the Board of Directors. of the forum. The researchers also discussed the findings with Schwab at a recent meeting that lasted more than five hours.

The final report is expected by the end of August, and the entire Board of Directors will forward the findings to the Swiss authorities who oversee non -profit organizations and will consider referral to the prosecution.

In his written statement, Claus Svab argued that “throughout this journey, Hilde and I never used the forum for our personal gain.”

Through his spokesman, he defended his annual salary of 1 million Swiss francs ($ 1.3 million) and the annual fixed 100,000 franc allowance for guests, mainly at his home. He also argued that he had ordered his assistants to separate personal expenditure and that he intends to return to the forum whatever was accidentally ruined.

For his wife’s trips, he stressed that they were covered by a “good faith” of agreement between the forum and the Schwab Foundation, which she directs and has not received a salary since 1973.

Concerning gifts, he argued that most of them donated them to charities or exposed them to the forum’s offices, and did not clearly remember some of what the investigation was.

The complaint of the informant who caused the investigation was submitted almost a year after a revealing report by the Wall Street Journal, which described a toxic culture for women and black workers in the organization.