Maduro Left Venezuela with $240 Billion in Debt 0 20

This amount significantly exceeds previous market forecasts and will set a new world record, surpassing even Greece's default in 2012 of $200 billion. Given the collapse of Venezuela's economy under President Nicolás Maduro, the country's debt-to-GDP ratio has critically worsened and exceeded 200%.

For comparison, in Latvia, the national debt will soon exceed 50% of GDP.

The largest portion of Venezuela's debt consists of bonds issued by the government and the state oil company PDVSA (about $60 billion in principal debt and $40 billion in unpaid interest, which increases by $5 billion annually).

Additionally, Venezuela owes $30-50 billion to oil companies and trade creditors, over $20 billion in court claims for expropriation of property during Hugo Chávez's era, as well as between $10 and $20 billion to China, around $6 billion to Russia, and $4 billion to development banks.

The administration led by Delcy Rodríguez has engaged specialists from Centerview Partners to develop a strategy for bringing the country back to international financial markets by the end of this year.

The success of this process will largely depend on the country's ability to resume oil production and reach a compromise with numerous bondholders.

Unusually for such a large-scale restructuring, the debt sustainability analysis has not been prepared by the International Monetary Fund, although technical consultations are being held with it.