Klaus Schwab, the founder of the World Economic Forum, is at the center of a growing scandal after preliminary findings from an internal probe into allegations of unauthorized spending, workplace misconduct, and manipulation of key research reports were leaked to several media outlets. The investigation into Schwab, launched earlier this year in response to whistleblower complaints, threatens to tarnish the WEF leader’s legacy and the reputation of the Forum he led for over five decades. Preliminary findings from investigators identified more than $1 million in questionable expenses billed to WEF by Schwab along with several other personal conduct and ethical concerns.
Schwab, who started WEF in 1971 and transformed Davos into a hub of elite international networking and diplomacy, stepped down from his role as chair of the board in April amid pressure from the whistleblower complaints. He had been expected to stay on until 2027.
The probe, conducted by Swiss law firm Homburger and reportedly overseen by WEF’s board of trustees, noted upwards of $1.1 million in questionable travel expenses filed by Schwab and his wife, Hilde. Many of the expenses covered the couple’s first-class tickets for Forum-related business. Hilde, however, has no formal role at the organization and was allegedly simply accompanying her husband.
Investigators also noted approximately $63,000 allocated for the Schwab’s travel to Venice, Miami, the Seychelles and other luxury destinations. The most recent of these trips was a week-long stay in Morocco from late December 2024 to early January 2025. These specific travel expenses reportedly had little or no evidence of any connection to the Forum.
Aside from travel costs, investigators found 14 hotel massages were expensed by the Forum using Schwab’s corporate credit card or that of junior employees, according to The Wall Street Journal. The report stipulated that Schwab later paid for about half of these services. Schwab, however, reportedly said he always instructed assistants to bill him for massages.
Investigators also noted Schwab and his wife used a driver paid by WEF on certain vacations and billed the organization for their land line and the cell phone used by their maid in Geneva. Other benefits enjoyed by the couple were expensed to WEF but not reported on income statements, the probe found.
A spokesperson for Schwab told the Journal that Schwab’s driver doubled as security and was used to mitigate potential security risks. As for the phone plans, the spokesperson told the Journal these expenses were justified given the volume of work and WEF-related hosting that occurred at Schwab’s residence.
Other concerns stemmed from work conducted on a luxury property owned by WEF called Villa Mundi, located on Switzerland’s Lake Geneva. Investigators say the Schwabs hired a design firm they had used personally in 2019 to perform costly refurbishments on the property’s interior. Then, they allege, Hilde largely used the WEF property for private use, investigators found. The Schwabs reportedly denied directing the internal design project or using the building for private events.
The report further detailed several gifts allegedly received by Schwab, including Russian tea sets, personalized Tiffany cufflinks, and fur coats, said to be in violation of the organization’s policies.
In a statement through a spokesperson to the Journal, Schwab denied any wrongdoing, citing a long-standing “good-faith understanding” between the Forum and the Schwab Foundation—an affiliated nonprofit chaired by his wife—to justify some of the expenditures. He emphasized that he entrusted assistants to separate private travel expenses from those related to work, and vowed to reimburse any expenses deemed personal after the investigation concludes.
As for the gifts, Schwab’s spokesperson said the WEF founder donated most gifts to charity and displayed others, including the Russian tea sets, at WEF’s headquarters. Schwab said he didn’t specifically recall the other gifts described by investigators.
“Throughout this journey, Hilde and I never used the Forum for personal enrichment,” Schwab said in a written statement to the Journal.
After initial details of the investigation first surfaced in the Swiss press on Sunday, Schwab accused the WEF board of violating an agreement to keep the investigatory process confidential, claiming, “I feel deceived. I am not available for further investigations,” according to a statement provided to the Financial Times. He added he had fully cooperated with the inquiry and pledged to defend his reputation “with all my strength, even in the context of a legal dispute.”
WEF’s board of trustees declined to specifically address the investigation’s findings, but acknowledged the seriousness of the claims in a statement to Fortune.
“The World Economic Forum’s Board of Trustees strongly condemns the indiscretions in connection with the investigation of the allegations made by whistleblowers against Klaus Schwab,” WEF told Fortune. “The Board of Trustees emphasizes the importance of an investigation by the law firm that is free from outside influence. The Board of Trustees will be solely responsible for assessing and evaluating the results of the investigation. The Board of Trustees will not be guided by speculation and interpretations in the media but will rely exclusively on the facts that emerge from the investigation.”
Homburger is expected to complete the investigation and submit recommendations to WEF’s board of trustees by the end of August, the same time frame in which invitations to the 2026 Davos summit are to be sent out.
