The United States handled more than $12 billion in Venezuelan oil and other natural resource revenues during the first nine months of this year, according to an independent accounting report released by the State Department, detailing Washington’s control over the flow of funds following the January operation that removed President Nicolás Maduro from power.
The report, prepared by accounting firm KPMG and dated October 29, outlines how payments from buyers of Venezuelan oil and other resources were deposited into a US Treasury account before being released to Venezuela’s interim government. The administration, led by former Maduro allies, now works closely with Washington.
The arrangement gives the US government a key role in determining how proceeds from Venezuela’s natural resources are held and disbursed, even as the funds remain the property of the Venezuelan state.
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A State Department official said the report was transmitted to Congress in early November. The official, who spoke anonymously, said the account had supported essential public services, macroeconomic stability and the rebuilding of key sectors, including energy, healthcare and infrastructure.
“The report shows the process is working,” the official said.
The scale of the transactions highlights the importance of Venezuela’s oil industry to the country’s finances and the extent of Washington’s involvement in managing the proceeds. Oil, petroleum products and natural gas generated more than $12.1 billion of the funds received in the account, making them by far the largest source of revenue.
Gold sales contributed another $108 million, while minerals generated $22 million and fertilizer sales added $24.6 million.
The KPMG report said $12.11 billion, representing nearly 99% of the total deposited into the account, had been disbursed during the reporting period. Most of the money went towards foreign exchange auctions conducted by Venezuelan authorities, while $133 million was paid directly to vendors providing services to the Venezuelan government.
The concentration of disbursements through foreign exchange auctions is a gamechanger for an economy that has struggled with currency instability and limited access to foreign currency. Oil receipts are a major source of dollars for Venezuela, and directing those proceeds into the domestic foreign exchange market can help finance imports and support transactions by businesses and government agencies.
However, the report’s figures do not by themselves establish how effectively the funds have translated into improved public services, infrastructure or economic conditions. The distinction between money disbursed and measurable outcomes will remain important as Washington and Venezuelan authorities account for the use of the revenues.
The report stated that the funds remain “sovereign property of Venezuela” but are “held pending disposition for public, governmental, or diplomatic purposes” as determined by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
That arrangement places huge discretion over the proceeds with the US administration. Although the money is formally recognized as Venezuelan property, its release and permitted uses are subject to decisions by the US Secretary of State. The structure therefore gives Washington influence over a major source of government financing during Venezuela’s political transition.
The publicly released report redacted the identities of the companies and other entities that deposited the money. The New York Times reported that most of the funds came from commodity traders Trafigura and Vitol, which received special licenses to sell Venezuelan oil shortly after the January 3 operation to seize Maduro and his wife.
Reuters reported on Wednesday that a gasoline trader at Vitol had links to US Vice President JD Vance and that those connections helped the company secure its license. The report raises questions about how access to Venezuelan oil sales was allocated and the role of political relationships in securing commercial opportunities under the new arrangement.
The reported involvement of major commodity traders also illustrates how the US-controlled account depends on private companies to market and sell Venezuelan resources. Their licenses provide access to a significant source of crude and petroleum products, while the proceeds flow through a financial structure overseen by Washington.
Venezuela’s oil industry remains key to its economic recovery prospects. The country’s public finances rely heavily on hydrocarbon exports, making the management of oil proceeds crucial as the interim government seeks to restore economic stability and rebuild damaged infrastructure.
The US arrangement has created a channel through which those revenues can be collected and allocated, but it also places the country’s access to its own resource income within a framework shaped by Washington. That could influence the interim government’s ability to finance public spending and manage foreign exchange, while giving the US administration leverage over the pace and priorities of economic reconstruction.
The figures also raise questions about transparency. Although KPMG prepared the report and the State Department made it public, the redaction of depositors’ names limits the ability of the public and lawmakers to assess which companies supplied the funds and the precise commercial arrangements behind the transactions.
The reported role of Trafigura and Vitol makes that disclosure issue more significant, given the value of the licenses and the political sensitivity surrounding access to Venezuelan oil. The Reuters report on Vitol’s alleged links to Vance adds another dimension to scrutiny of how those licenses were awarded. But it does not mean that the company received preferential treatment improperly.