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The Muni LowdownAuthor: ION Analytics
The Muni Lowdown is a periodic podcast recapping significant news developments in the municipal bond market from Debtwire. Language: en Genres: Business, Government Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Venezuela, bonds, and muni drift
Wednesday, 6 May, 2026
Host Paul Greaves and Ben Miller, managing editor for Debtwire Latin America, speak with our guest about how Venezuela’s political shock and the CITGO sale are reshaping expectations for one of the world’s largest sovereign restructurings. After the January operation that led to Nicolás Maduro’s capture and Delcy Rodríguez becoming interim president, Venezuelan bonds surged into the low 40s as investors reassessed political risk and the prospects for a long‑stalled restructuring. We explore why the PDVSA 2020 secured creditors now sit at the center of negotiations and how a USD 60bn stock of defaulted bonds fits into a much larger liability burden. The discussion focuses on CITGO — Venezuela’s most valuable foreign asset — and the Delaware‑supervised sale that produced a USD 5.9bn winning bid, including a USD 2.1bn carveout for the secureds. We also look at OFAC’s expanding role in determining what restructuring steps are even possible, and we close by asking our guest for the key hinge point that will signal whether Venezuela is finally moving toward a real resolution.
