Elliott’s Citgo Bid Sets Up Venezuela Investors for Rare Win

  • Investors expect a deal for a series of defaulted PDVSA bonds
  • Venezuela is in default on $60 billion of dollar bonds

The bonds are set to be paid off after an Elliott Investment Management affiliate won the bidding process for one of PDVSA’s subsidiaries for $7.3 billion.

Photographer: Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Venezuela’s state oil company hasn’t paid bondholders a dime in the last five years. Yet, investors who’ve held on to one particular security are getting ready for a massive payoff.

The Petroleos de Venezuela SA bond that matured in 2020 has emerged as the lone bright spot in the $60 billion pile of defaulted Venezuelan government and oil bonds. It trades for 93 cents on the dollar — with some analysts arguing it has room to gain — while all the others are quoted for less than 17 cents.