Trump Administration Opens U.S. to 10 Venezuelan Gold Bars After Maduro Ouster
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 28
Trump Administration Opens U.S. to 10 Venezuelan Gold Bars After Maduro Ouster
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 28
Summary
In early March, the Trump administration changed U.S. policy to let traders import Venezuelan gold, and 10 bars were brought to the White House the same day.
Trump had previously blacklisted Venezuelan gold as environmentally destructive and tied to corruption, but reversed course after toppling Nicolás Maduro and moving to control Venezuela’s resources.
The first shipments were set to come from a state-owned mining company that still remained designated a U.S. national security threat.
The gold push followed Washington’s takeover of Venezuela’s oil exports and extended its reach into the country’s mineral wealth, even as U.S. refiners were unwilling to handle the metal.
What hidden environmental and security costs lurk behind the sudden influx of Venezuelan gold into the American market?
How will the massive transfer of overseas Venezuelan bullion fundamentally reshape global commodity markets and reconstruction efforts?
Could the billion-dollar rush for Venezuela's minerals inadvertently finance the criminal networks the intervention sought to dismantle?
U.S. Lifts Gold Sanctions in 2026: Venezuela’s $4.3 Billion Windfall, Corporate Influx, and the New Resource War in the Orinoco Arc
Overview
In early 2026, after the U.S. captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, Acting President Delcy Rodríguez quickly shifted Venezuela’s policy to cooperate with Washington. This led to high-level meetings and the U.S. Treasury’s General License 51, which allowed American companies to buy Venezuelan gold under strict U.S. oversight. The move sparked a rush of foreign mining interest and prompted Venezuela to pass a new mining law to attract investment. However, the expansion of mining in the Orinoco Mining Arc has caused severe environmental damage and exposed Indigenous communities to violence and disease, as criminal groups and corrupt networks continue to dominate the region.