Beneath the ruins of Signa, something darker is hiding.
And it has three letters: WEC.
The dramatic collapse of Rene Benko’s Signa Group has shaken the foundations of the European financial elite. With billions in investor losses, criminal investigations in at least four jurisdictions, and a pre-trial detention that has already been extended multiple times, the case has become a symbol of white-collar decadence.
But now, a new axis of influence is emerging in the post-Benko shadows: the World Economic Council (WEC) — a privately held, Austria-registered entity that mirrors the World Economic Forum (WEF) in tone and structure, but with far less transparency and far more coincidence.
Enter the WEC: Coincidence or Coordinated Continuity?
While authorities chase down Benko’s missing millions, gold reserves, and debt-fueled empires, WEC figures have quietly stepped into the vacuum — not as prosecutors or auditors, but as successors to Benko’s core power structures.
Let’s review what we now know:
- In November 2024, two WEC partners — Robert Schimanko and Thomas Limberger — were appointed to the INGBE Foundation (Liechtenstein) and Laura Privatstiftung (Austria), respectively.
These foundations are now at the center of asset concealment investigations. - On March 11, 2025, during Benko’s pre-trial detention, INGBE sold 360 kg of gold — worth €30 million — allegedly orchestrated by insiders.
The gold proceeds landed in a Liechtenstein account. - Robert Schimanko, a former banker linked to the Madoff and Manhattan Investment Fund frauds, was reportedly Benko’s personal buyer at Signa’s liquidation auctions.
Watches, bracelets, boats — all moved discreetly back into Benko’s orbit. - Thomas Limberger, Schimanko’s partner at SilverArrow Capital Group, has appeared in scandals before — most notably during the Oerlikon takeover involving Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg.
- William H. Shawn, a U.S. lawyer, is both a WEC Ambassador and Schimanko’s legal enforcer, currently threatening legal action against media outlets investigating these connections.
The WEC Web — Orchestrated Rebirth of Elite Control?
If this isn’t conspiracy-worthy, what is?
The WEC — registered as a GmbH (limited liability company) in Vienna with zero NGO oversight — promotes itself as a “consortium of global business leaders”. Its website offers grand visions of innovation and economic resilience. What it doesn’t say is how its leadership overlaps with collapsed financial vehicles, high-level fraud cases, and asset migration schemes.
It doesn’t explain why:
- An Israeli intelligence contractor (Moshe Buller), reportedly hired by Signa to spy on business rivals, is listed as a WEC Ambassador.
- The WEC shares personnel with the IWS (Internationaler Wirtschaftssenat) in Berlin — an NGO front whose links to real policy impact remain vague.
- Its leadership is positioning itself inside the legal and financial structures left behind by one of Europe’s most legally radioactive figures: Rene Benko.
Download the Full WEC Dossier
To shine a light into this opaque network, our partners at FinTelegram have compiled a 60+ page WEC Dossier, with profiles, company records, timeline of asset transfers, and an insider look at the WEC–SilverArrow–Benko triangle.
📥 Download it here → FinTelegram WEC Dossier PDF
What Are We Looking At?
This may not just be a story of failed ambition and real estate hubris.
It may be a case study in post-crisis elite repositioning — where the same actors who operated behind Signa now regroup under the cloak of the WEC, ready for the next cycle of control.
Because in white-collar crime, the players rarely vanish — they just change acronyms.
FinCrime Observer will continue following the money trail.
We urge investigators, whistleblowers, and financial watchdogs to take this dossier seriously — and to act before another cycle of disaster is quietly rebranded as “innovation.”
🔐 If you have more information about WEC, SilverArrow, or the Benko foundations, contact us securely via Whistle42.com.
