One of the sources, an IDB person with direct knowledge of the matter, said the directors discussed the possibility of hiring an outside firm to investigate the allegations and asking Claver-Carone to step down. temporarily.
The other two sources confirmed that the bank’s 14 directors, its general counsel and its assistant secretary met to discuss the allegations and how to proceed in a two-and-a-half-hour virtual meeting on Tuesday.
IDB officials are expected to meet again this week to discuss the outside firm and Claver-Carone’s employment status, a source said.
Reuters was unable to confirm claims about the alleged relationship, which if verified would appear to violate bank rules.
The IDB did not comment when asked about the meeting and the allegations. Claver-Carone, a former White House official appointed to the IDB post by President Donald Trump, did not respond to repeated emails or calls seeking comment.
Prior to joining the IDB in 2020, Claver-Carone served under Trump as Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the National Security Council.
The IDB is a development bank which, although much smaller than the International Monetary Fund or the World Bank, is a key player in Latin America. It was responsible for $23.4 billion in funding and other financial commitments to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2021, according to bank figures.
An anonymous email sent to the bank’s board and chief ethics officer a week ago accused Claver-Carone of having a relationship with a senior strategist who reported to him, according to the bank’s source with knowledge. directly from the meeting. Reuters has not seen the email.
The email also accused Claver-Carone and the strategist of misusing IDB funds, a source said, without giving further details.
The IDB’s code of ethics, published on its website, states that “you may not participate in any decision related to the employment of a person with whom you have an intimate relationship.”
The allegations surfaced just weeks after the bank’s annual meeting and just as Claver-Carone is seeking to push through a capital raise for IDB Invest, the bank’s private sector arm.
The capital increase would require the support of the United States, the bank’s largest shareholder, and its other members at a time when resources are limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the increasing climatic shocks. Leading Democrats have opposed Mr Trump’s appointment of Ms Claver-Carone to the IDB post.
The US Treasury Department declined to comment when asked about the IDB meeting.
The administrators are expected to meet again on Thursday to ask the board of governors, most of whom are finance ministers from member countries, to authorize them to launch an investigation, according to the banking source with knowledge of the meeting.
The results would be shared with governors when it was completed, the banking source said.
Claver-Carone, a hard-liner on Cuba, faced strong backlash ahead of his election as IDB president in 2020 from some member states, including Argentina and Mexico, who took offense at breaking the bank’s tradition since 1959 of having a president from a Latin American country.
At the time, Claver-Carone brushed off https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-usa-bank-idUSKBN24Z1DH, saying he had “overwhelming” support. “, citing public support from 15 countries and six more in private.