Accor SA, a French hotel operator, denied allegations of systemic human or child trafficking after a report by short-seller Grizzly Research questioned the group's human rights practices. The company has launched a detailed internal investigation and hired an external firm to verify the findings. Accor stated that the conclusions of these verifications would be made public, and if any allegations are confirmed, the group would take all appropriate measures and reserved the right to prosecute involved parties.
Grizzly Research's report alleged that some Accor hotels ignored signs of child trafficking, specifically mentioning the trafficking of Ukrainian orphans through various countries for adoption by Russian parents. The report also claimed that Accor-affiliated hotels in over 20 countries accommodated requests to book rooms for underage girls with adult men in what was described as an obvious sexual context. Accor emphasized its 20-year commitment to fighting trafficking, citing stringent policies, regular audits, and employee training, with its last internal audit completed in 2025.
The report also raised allegations about Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin's ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Accor clarified that Bazin met Epstein once, over 20 years ago, in a professional context during a meeting with multiple investors. Accor's shares initially plunged 11% following the report's publication but recovered to about a 6% drop. The company operates more than 5,600 hotels across 110 countries and maintains a significant presence in Ukraine and surrounding Russian-speaking countries.
The short-seller's claims included that more than 20 Accor hotels allegedly agreed to house Ukrainian children for illegal deportation to Russia, with some Russian hotels assuring investigators that they would keep information confidential from Accor's headquarters. Grizzly Research stated that their email requests for bookings combined minors, an active war zone, an unnamed modeling agency, and long stays without parents, yet 80% of responding Accor hotels allegedly accepted these requests. Accor firmly denies involvement in the alleged systemic exploitation and indicated it might take legal action if Grizzly's allegations are unsubstantiated.
