Venezuela Gold Doubles in Value in London

VENEZUELA · GOLD

Venezuela wants Britain’s central bank, the Bank of England, to return about 31 tonnes of gold that has been caught in a fight over who controls its central bank since 2019. On Wednesday 28 October, acting President Delcy Rodríguez told the foreign ministry and the state’s law office to start bringing it home.

At a gold price above US$4,000 an ounce, 31 tonnes would be worth roughly US$4 billion, about twice the US$1.95 billion that a UK court put on the holding in 2022. The tonnage is Caracas’s own figure, since the court papers give only a dollar value.

US readers have a stake because the US Treasury sanctioned Venezuela’s central bank on 17 April 2019 and licensed financial services for it on 14 April 2026. That licence states that it does not authorize the unblocking of any property already blocked.

What Changed on 28 October

Rodríguez, ordered by Venezuela’s Supreme Court in January to serve as acting president after US forces captured Nicolás Maduro, spoke at a council of vice presidents and ministers in the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas. She told the foreign ministry and the Procuraduría General to start the steps needed to press for the gold’s return, and said she would not give up demanding “our gold.”

She said the gold belongs to Venezuelans, and the presidency adds that she called it property of the central bank. She also said an earlier process pushed by opposition sectors was dropped, which in her view leaves no obstacle to its return.

The order follows talks with the opposition-led National Assembly elected in 2015, and a joint communiqué of Wednesday 21 October repeated to UK institutions the “necessity and urgency” of recovering the reserves. The agreement says the money is meant for people hit by the double earthquake of 24 June, and earlier coverage details the joint gold panel.

Why the Gold Is in London and Who Controls It

London is a global centre for gold trading, and the Bank of England says storing gold there gives central banks easy access to that market. The Bank is the world’s second-largest keeper of gold after the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and it says it owns only two bars itself.

The dispute reached court in May 2020, when the central bank, acting on the Maduro Board’s instructions, sued the Bank of England over payment orders for the gold. The Bank asked the court to decide which of the two rival boards it should obey.

The Maduro Board was named by Nicolás Maduro, who was captured by US forces in January 2026, and the Guaidó Board by opposition leader Juan Guaidó in July 2019. The UK had recognised Guaidó as Venezuela‘s interim president on 4 February 2019, after a May 2018 election it considered deeply flawed.

On 20 December 2021 the UK Supreme Court ruled that courts must accept the British government’s recognition of Guaidó, not Maduro, as Venezuela’s president. The Court of Appeal on 30 June 2023, upholding a commercial court ruling of 29 July 2022, then refused to give effect to Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal rulings backing the Maduro Board.

Why the Return Is Contested

The Court of Appeal held that the appointment of the Guaidó Board must be treated as a foreign act of state, which UK courts will not judge, because the UK recognised Guaidó when he made it. It added that this recognition is not affected by the UK’s decision to stop recognising him from January 2023.

The court left it to the commercial court to decide the future course of the case in light of that change. None of these rulings ordered the gold released.

On 5 January 2026 the UK Foreign Secretary told Parliament’s House of Commons that the UK urged acting President Delcy Rodríguez to act on the economic crisis, political prisoners and free elections. That statement calls her acting president but does not say whether the UK recognises her as head of state.

What It Means for You

For US readers nothing changes immediately, because the order is a government instruction and not a court ruling or a transfer. Investors following Venezuela’s recovery should watch whether the Bank of England, UK courts or the US Treasury act next.

The case shows how recognition decisions in London and sanctions decisions in Washington decide who can use a state’s assets abroad. A companion article explains the legal process and next steps, and the Venezuela hub links earlier coverage of a possible move to New York and the joint push by old rivals.

What Is Not Known

It is not known how the Bank of England will respond, as no public reply from it or the UK government was available on 29 October. Nor is it known whether the Guaidó Board still pursues its claim, as Rodríguez said opposition sectors dropped theirs.

It is also unclear whether a transfer would need a US licence, because the April 2026 licence leaves blocked property blocked. Published values of US$1.3 billion to US$2 billion do not match a gold price above US$4,000 an ounce for 31 tonnes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Venezuela’s gold in the Bank of England?

Central banks store gold in London because it is a global trading hub, and the Bank of England keeps bars for governments and banks. Venezuela’s central bank deposited the gold, while the Bank of England says it owns only two bars itself.

How much Venezuelan gold is in London?

Caracas says about 31 tonnes, which at a gold price above US$4,000 an ounce would be worth roughly US$4 billion. A 2022 UK court judgment valued the holding at about US$1.95 billion.

Can Venezuela get its gold back now?

Not automatically, because the 28 October order only tells Venezuelan officials to start diplomatic and legal steps. The Bank of England asked a UK court in 2020 to decide whose instructions it should follow.

What did the UK courts decide about the gold?

The UK Supreme Court ruled on 20 December 2021 that courts must follow the government’s recognition of Juan Guaidó, and the Court of Appeal backed that approach on 30 June 2023. Neither ruling ordered the gold released.

Sources: Presidency of Venezuela, account of the 28 October 2026 council meeting; Text of the 21 October 2026 joint communiqué of the national dialogue delegations; UK Supreme Court, Maduro Board v Guaidó Board [2021] UKSC 57, 20 December 2021; Commercial Court, [2022] EWHC 2040 (Comm), 29 July 2022; Court of Appeal, [2023] EWCA Civ 742, 30 June 2023; Bank of England explainer on its gold vaults; UK Foreign Secretary statement to the House of Commons, 5 January 2026; US Treasury OFAC action on the Central Bank of Venezuela, 17 April 2019; US Treasury OFAC General License 57, 14 April 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief