Venezuela reveals $240B in debt it cannot pay (~$100B more than expected)
4 hours ago
- #global markets
- #Venezuela debt
- #debt restructuring
- Venezuela's interim government under Delcy Rodríguez plans to acknowledge a debt of approximately $240 billion, significantly above prior market estimates of $150-200 billion.
- The debt restructuring would be the largest ever, surpassing Greece's 2012 default, aimed at returning Venezuela to international markets after nearly a decade of exclusion.
- Adviser Centerview Partners is finalizing a viability plan for release in early July, preceded by a macroeconomic framework showing the economy shrank to about $100 billion from $370 billion in 2012.
- Concerns arise as the debt sustainability analysis lacks IMF endorsement, worrying the opposition about Venezuela's fragility with creditors, though the IMF maintains technical contacts.
- Documented debt includes around $60 billion in government and PDVSA bonds plus $40 billion in accrued interest, plus obligations to oil companies, suppliers, expropriation claims, and loans from China and Russia.
- Investors focus on oil revenues, at $5.5 billion in Q1, slightly improved but still below pre-sanction levels, with skepticism over a deal by 2026, most expecting it in 2027.