CARACAS, (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Friday ruled that Venezuelan state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela’s 2020 bonds are “valid and enforceable,” a court document showed, in a setback for opposition leader Juan Guaido.
In a statement Friday afternoon, Guaido’s team said it would consider appealing the decision, calling the issuing of the bonds “absolutely fraudulent.”
The bonds are backed by half of the shares in the parent company of U.S. refiner Citgo Petroleum Corp, and Guaido’s team had sued last year to declare them invalid on the grounds that the Venezuelan government had issued them without the approval of the opposition-held National Assembly.
But the ruling does not pave the way for creditors to immediately seize shares in Citgo’s parent. The U.S. government has used its sanctions on Venezuela, aimed at ousting President Nicolas Maduro, to prevent bondholders from taking such action through at least January 2021.
