Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, which gathers the world's business and political elite in the Swiss mountain village of Davos every year, has resigned as chair of its board of trustees, the WEF has said.

"Following my recent announcement, and as I enter my 88th year, I have decided to step down from the position of Chair and as a member of the Board of Trustees, with immediate effect," Schwab said in a statement released by the WEF on Monday.

The Geneva-based institution had announced earlier this month that Schwab, 87, would be stepping down, without indicating a timeframe.

The WEF board said in the statement that it had accepted Schwab's resignation at an extraordinary meeting held on April 20, and that Vice Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe would become the interim chairman.

A committee to appoint a future chair has been established.

Schwab established the WEF in 1971 with the aim of creating a forum for policymakers and top corporate executives to tackle major global issues.

Widely regarded as a cheerleader for globalisation, the WEF's annual Davos gathering has in recent years drawn disapproval from critics as elitist and removed from ordinary people.