2026-01-07 08:15
publication
2026-01-07 08:15
The latest data from the Swiss customs office paints a picture of a gigantic financial operation by the government of Nicolas Maduro. In the years 2013-17, Venezuelan gold worth a total of USD 5.2 billion came to Switzerland. For Caracas, which is in deep crisis and isolated by sanctions, the sale of the precious metal has become a financial drip, allowing it to maintain liquidity and finance the current needs of the government.
Switzerland is one of the largest gold refining centers in the world. Five large refineries operate here. The latest report puts Swiss refineries in a difficult position, as they have been declaring stricter ethical requirements for years. The scale of imports from Venezuela raises questions about the effectiveness of due diligence procedures. There are serious concerns that some of the bullion could have come from the so-called bloody mining in the Arco Minero region, where mining is controlled by armed groups and the process is carried out in flagrant violation of human rights and ecological standards.
Between 2012 and 2016, the Venezuelan central bank conducted a large sell-off. A large part of these sales went to Switzerland, said Rhona O'Connell, a market analyst at StoneX, quoted by Reuters.
From the perspective of Caracas, gold trading is a strategic operation conducted in conditions of “economic war”. The government of the deposed Maduro treated data on reserves as a top state secret, bypassing parliamentary control. However, market experts emphasized that the massive sale of reserve assets is a classic example of “eating” national wealth, which in no way healed the foundations of the Venezuelan economy, but only prolonged the current political system.
Gold exports to Switzerland fell to zero in 2017, when the European Union imposed sanctions on Venezuelans accused of violating human rights or undermining democracy. Switzerland adopted EU sanctions in early 2018.
Maduro claimed to earn the equivalent of $120 a month
Let us recall that on Monday, Switzerland froze assets belonging to Nicolas Maduro and his associates deposited in this country. Subverted Venezuela's leader publicly claimed to earn the equivalent of $120 a month. However, the findings of investigative journalists and American prosecutors show that his family and those around him made fortunes from corruption and drug trafficking.
Venezuelan poverty
The minimum wage, unadjusted from 2022, is 130 bolivars, which is approximately half a dollar at the exchange rate from the end of 2025. The government paid public sector employees and retirees allowances equivalent to up to $130 a month, but – as the teachers' union calculated in 2024 – the cost of maintaining a family at a basic level was about $500 a month.
The disclosure of Swiss customs data sends a strong signal to commodity markets and regulators. This may result in further pressure on financial institutions in Europe to completely dissociate themselves from transactions involving Venezuelan gold. This case also shows that despite global sanctions and the digital revolution in finance, traditional gold remains the most effective survival tool for regimes cut off from the SWIFT system.
Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were heard on Monday in a federal court in New York on four charges, including: participating in a narco-terrorist conspiracy and importing cocaine into the USA. They pleaded not guilty. The next hearing is scheduled for March 17.
Prepared by JM
