How a Venezuelan Oligarch Under Swiss Scrutiny Became Washington's Man in Caracas

A Controversial Fixer at the Center of US-Venezuela Diplomacy

Senior U.S. officials intervened in an international criminal investigation into a Venezuelan businessman who was enlisted by the Trump administration to help assert control over Venezuela's government and oil industries. The businessman in question is Alejandro Betancourt — a 46-year-old London-based oil magnate who, depending on who you ask, is either a savvy dealmaker or one of the most consequential figures in Venezuela's long history of corruption. Washington, it seems, has decided he is the former.

A major investigation by The Sunday Times of London reported that Betancourt had been picked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to serve as the key intermediary between the Trump administration and the government of interim President Delcy Rodríguez. Sources told the newspaper that Betancourt is styling himself as Venezuela's new "oil tsar," helping Washington negotiate deals and revive oil production after the U.S. removal of Nicolás Maduro in January. It's a remarkable transformation for a man whose name has appeared in criminal dossiers across three continents.

A Legal Cloud That Spans Europe and the United States

U.S. officials lobbied to resolve the case in Switzerland in a way that would avoid criminal charges and end travel restrictions against Betancourt, and they have not acted on a Swiss arrest warrant against him. Instead, the United States has allowed Betancourt to enter the country repeatedly for meetings with the Trump administration. This is not a minor legal footnote — it represents a direct collision between U.S. geopolitical strategy and the rule of law.

Betancourt, in the past decade, has faced multiple investigations in Switzerland, Spain, and the United States into alleged money laundering. Spanish authorities are investigating allegations involving a $4.3 billion money-laundering and tax-evasion scheme, while prosecutors in Zurich have examined whether Venezuelan public funds were laundered through European banks. He has been identified as "Conspirator 2" in a U.S. criminal complaint, and investigations by OCCRP, the Miami Herald, and Spanish judicial authorities have linked him to a sprawling corporate network in Luxembourg, Barbados, and Panama allegedly used to move embezzled Venezuelan state funds.

Betancourt is one of a group of so-called "Bolichicos" — well-connected, younger businessmen who grew rich under the regime of Hugo Chávez. He and his associate Francisco Convit allegedly overcharged the Venezuelan government $2.9 billion to build power plants. Betancourt has denied any wrongdoing.

Geopolitics Trumps Accountability

Betancourt controls Venezuela's leading independent oil producer and is helping the U.S. administration identify promising energy assets, assess operational bottlenecks, and make industry connections — working to facilitate a U.S. strategy to tap smaller American wildcatters as established oil majors have largely balked at investing there. Several preliminary agreements have been reached in recent months with companies including Lionheart Capital and Pacific Coast Energy Co.

Mauricio Claver-Carone, identified as an informal envoy of Secretary of State Marco Rubio for Venezuela, acknowledged that U.S. officials used Betancourt as an intermediary. The businessman reportedly has something valuable for both sides: he knows the Venezuelan oil sector and maintains business and political contacts in the United States, with his role focusing on facilitating talks about restoring oil production and bringing in U.S. capital. Critics, however, are alarmed.

Thor Halvorssen, the Venezuelan-born founder of the Human Rights Foundation and a longtime Betancourt critic, said that the Trump administration "at the highest level, is well aware" of allegations concerning Betancourt, and argued that partnering with him raises serious questions about "the complete lack of integrity in America's handling of Venezuela."

A Pattern With Consequences

The broader dynamic is essentially the U.S. resurrecting an oligarch it once shunned — a calculated gamble that access to Venezuela's oil wealth is worth the ethical and legal compromises that come with it. The Trump administration's willingness to shield Betancourt from a Swiss arrest warrant signals to allies and adversaries alike that diplomatic utility can override international legal cooperation when the stakes are high enough.

What happens next in Venezuela's post-Maduro oil economy may well depend on whether that gamble pays off — and whether the man at the center of it can deliver on his promises without his legal past catching up to him. For now, Washington appears to be betting yes.