"Maduro Administration Exported 123 Tons of Gold to Switzerland to Prevent National Default"

As National Default Crisis Intensified in Early Maduro Administration
127 Tons of Venezuelan Central Bank Gold Sent to Switzerland

It has been revealed that Venezuela exported over 100 tons of gold to Switzerland as the economic crisis worsened in the early days of the Nicolas Maduro administration.

Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela. Photo by AFP Yonhap News

On January 6 (local time), Swiss public broadcaster SRF, citing Swiss customs data, reported that Venezuela sent a total of 127 tons of gold to Switzerland between 2012 and 2016. Based on international gold prices at the time, this amounts to approximately 4.7 billion Swiss francs (8.6 trillion won).

According to the report, gold exports to Switzerland surged each year, from 4.4 tons in 2012 to 10.2 tons in 2013, and 76.8 tons in 2016.

Based on 2013, when the Maduro administration took office, gold exports over the four-year period totaled 123 tons.

The outlet reported that a significant portion of this gold appears to have been refined in Switzerland and then re-exported to countries such as the United Kingdom and T?rkiye.

Venezuela experienced an economic crisis in 2014 due to a sharp drop in international oil prices and simultaneous Western sanctions. In 2017, when Donald Trump became President of the United States and strengthened sanctions, the country entered a state of default. SRF reported, "The Maduro government sold some of its gold or used it as collateral for loans in an effort to prevent a national default."

However, from 2017 onward, gold exports to Switzerland ceased, and the following year, when the Swiss government joined the European Union's sanctions against Venezuela, related transactions were effectively halted.

The Central Bank of Venezuela held nearly 400 tons of gold in the early 2010s. However, by 2022, its gold reserves had fallen to 69 tons, the lowest level in 50 years.

Meanwhile, on January 5, the Swiss government froze the assets held in Switzerland by President Maduro and his close associates. While the exact amount of frozen assets has not been disclosed, local media previously reported that in 2021, prosecutors in Zurich confirmed that 9 billion Swiss francs (16.4 trillion won) in Venezuelan public funds were distributed across hundreds of accounts in Switzerland. However, it has not been confirmed whether this is related to the gold exports.