The US has eased sanctions on Venezuela’s central bank as the Trump administration seeks to revive the country’s oil industry following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro. The Ministry of Finance issued a general license allowing financial institutions to deal with the central bank and select other entities in the country.
The move allows incumbent Venezuelan President Delca Rodríguez to transact with international banks after a seven-year ban stemming from US sanctions imposed during Trump’s first term. It’s a key step toward easing economic hurdles in Venezuela that have delayed payments to local oil companies and undermined President Donald Trump’s plan to rapidly increase oil output.
The activity permitted under the general license includes bank, payment and correspondence accounts in US dollars. The license, issued by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, also lifts sanctions against three state-owned Venezuelan banks: Banco de Venezuela, Banco Digital de los Trabajadores and Banco del Tesoro.
A separate general license also allows for the negotiation of contracts with the Venezuelan government if the parties receive authorization from OFAC.
Easing sanctions on Venezuela’s central bank would add “real depth to the foreign exchange market,” Alejandro Grisanti, director of consultancy Ecoanalítica, said before the announcement.
The U.S. Treasury Department blocked Venezuela’s central bank in 2019, blocking most of its activities “to prevent it from being used as a tool of the illegitimate Maduro regime,” according to a statement at the time.
Under Maduro, Venezuela has resorted to opaque ways of moving money, including using banks in Turkey and Russia, through cryptocurrency platforms and other methods that have opened the door to corrupt practices.
Since Maduro’s capture, Washington has seized control of Venezuela’s oil sales and taken steps to ease sanctions on the nation’s energy sector. Venezuelan crude exports to US ports rose more than 150% in March compared to December.
Rodriguez’s interim government moved quickly to reform key laws to make Venezuela more hospitable to American investment, including energy and mining companies.
Bloomberg reported last week that the Trump administration is considering lifting sanctions on Venezuela’s central bank.
Sanctions against the central bank have caused uncertainty in the international banking sector for years. In some cases, they have led to so-called overcompliance, where banks block or delay legitimate transactions related to Venezuela for fear of potential sanctions.
(With inputs from Bloomberg)
