For Venezuela’s True Believers, the Ultimate Risky Bet Beckons
- Electricidad de Caracas entices Landesbank Berlin Investment
- $650 million of bonds maturing in April priced at 65 cents
People walk past an electrical substation in Caracas, Venezuela.
Photographer: Meridith Kohut/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
For years, investors in Venezuela and its state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, took comfort knowing that in the event of a default, there’d be assets they could potentially seize to recoup some of their losses.
But for bond buyers with an even bigger appetite for risk, those willing to throw themselves at the mercy of President Nicolas Maduro’s survival and track record of making good on debt payments, there’s another option: Electricidad de Caracas, the state-run electric utility.