00:00It wasn't long after Nicolas Maduro was captured, brought to the U.S. for trial,
00:03that I saw mention of our next guest in an article that was in the Wall Street Journal.
00:06This was early January, January 3rd of 2026.
00:09The headline was, Finance Industry Eyes, Investment Opportunities in Venezuela.
00:13Charles Myers, the founder and chairman of Signum Global Advisors,
00:16was planning a trip to Caracas, quote,
00:18with officials from top hedge funds and asset managers to determine
00:21whether there are investment prospects in the country under new leadership.
00:24That trip has just happened. Charles and I have stayed in touch.
00:27I said, you've got to come on the show when you get back from the trip.
00:29He got back on Wednesday night, and Charles Myers joins us now.
00:32Charles, great to have you with us.
00:33And let me just start with what you set out to do there, as outlined in that piece,
00:36to see if there are, in fact, investment opportunities in Venezuela.
00:40What did you learn over the course of this two-day trip that you took to Caracas?
00:44Yeah, good morning, and thanks for having me on.
00:46So we, as a firm, we're sort of known for doing these trips.
00:50Last year, we took clients to Ukraine and to Syria
00:53to meet with the governments there to look at reconstruction opportunities.
00:57So Venezuela was sort of a natural for us post-Maduro.
01:01We, however, for this trip, had so much more interest
01:04that we had to turn it into a conference on the ground.
01:07We had 55 participants from all over the world fly in
01:10and do a two-day conference on the ground.
01:13I'd say that our biggest takeaway is things are moving at light speed in Venezuela.
01:18The government is pushing through significant reforms that benefit foreign investors.
01:24They've changed the hydrocarbons law. They changed the minerals law.
01:27There's also things on the diplomatic front.
01:30We've reestablished diplomatic ties with Venezuela, the United States.
01:34American Airlines is launching nonstop service from Miami next month to Caracas.
01:39Things are moving at light speed for foreign investors.
01:41Our two days there, including meeting with the president of the republic, was very productive.
01:47I think most people, including myself, walked away even more optimistic on the future of Venezuela.
01:51We saw that picture there of you with the acting president, Elsie Rodriguez.
01:54Charles, I have some questions about your take on the durability of those changes and those reforms.
01:59But first, I do just want to ask you about the atmospherics, about the trip.
02:03You met with the president. You were in and out of the palace.
02:06I don't know if you went. I think you went to the U.S. Embassy.
02:08Can you just talk to us about what you saw, how the city is feeling and looking?
02:13What, you know, the apparatus around the president and the government, what your impression was from meeting with them and
02:19just seeing them kind of in action?
02:22Yeah, first, just on atmospherics to say that we did not feel unsafe at all the entire trip.
02:28We did hire a private security company with armored cars and bodyguards.
02:32We actually didn't need them in the end.
02:34All of our meetings took place, including with the American ambassador at the hotel where we conducted the conference, except
02:40for the meeting with the interim president.
02:42We went to Miraflores, the presidential palace, met with her, half of her cabinet.
02:46I would say that the biggest takeaway from all of these meetings, including our visit with the president, is that
02:54Venezuela is open for foreign investment.
02:57Her entire talk with us or her entire discussion with us was around the future of economic success in Venezuela,
03:05central to which is foreign investment.
03:07Christina, bringing up durability, let me ask you about that, because after Maduro was captured,
03:11I think there was a lot of commentary from energy executives, oil executives about what it would take for them
03:16to make a sustained commitment in that country at this point in time,
03:20amidst kind of the uncertainty about who's going to be leading it, are there going to be elections, et cetera,
03:24et cetera.
03:25What risks remain?
03:26As you talk to those that you traveled with, what are they still worried about?
03:31What do they still need to see to feel incredibly more so confident in investing in the country?
03:36Yeah, so just to say, again, this is a medium-term play.
03:40It's not, you know, everything's going to happen overnight for foreign investors.
03:43First, the United States needs to lift sanctions.
03:46That's the biggest obstacle today, I think, for most foreign investment, not necessarily in oil and gas,
03:51because U.S. Treasury is issuing waivers and licenses so that U.S. and other foreign oil and gas companies
03:59can go in and start to operate.
04:00But on the durability issue, here's what I would say.
04:04It's been basically three months since Maduro was taken out.
04:07That is a very short period of time.
04:09So far, the government, as I said, has pushed through meaningful structural reform.
04:14This looks like a very stable government for now, and I think that we'll continue to see progress both on
04:20the U.S. sanctions lifting side,
04:22but also their banking system needs to be reconnected into the global banking system.
04:27This is a country that really is emerging from 27 years of economic and political repression.
04:35It's going to take a bit of time, but I think it is durable.
04:38On elections, if I can, very quickly, because I get this question a lot, foreign investors don't need to see
04:43a transition to democracy.
04:46Foreign investors invest in countries around the world, including in the Gulf, where there is not a democracy.
04:52But having said that, I think we're looking at what Secretary Rubio has laid out, which is about a two
04:57-year transition to democratic elections in Venezuela.
05:01I think we'll get there as well.
05:02All right.
05:03But when you're talking about elections and uncertainty for investors, there are two elections at play here,
05:07because I would be concerned if I were investing about who gets elected to the White House the next time
05:12and whether or not these commitments and involvement from the U.S. are going to stay or change or impact
05:17the government in Venezuela.
05:18What is your take on that? Is that something the folks you brought with you are concerned about?
05:24Yeah, so there are two main issues there, right?
05:27First, Venezuela needs to hold their own elections and transition to democracy.
05:31I think that does happen within about two years.
05:35By then, Trump will still be in office, so we don't have the 2028 election.
05:39If a Democrat wins the White House, as long as Venezuela is still a stable, prosperous country that has already
05:49undergone their democratic transition,
05:52I think a democratic White House would be incredibly supportive.
05:55And if I can, on this issue of durability and the importance of Venezuela, no matter who wins our election
05:59in 2028,
06:01Venezuela, the Strait of Hormuz being closed and the war in Iran has highlighted how critical it is to have
06:08a more secure supply of oil or a more secure supply of energy.
06:13Venezuela is that.
06:14They're sitting on the world's largest oil reserves today and I think makes Venezuela even more attractive and more critical
06:22to U.S. national security, regardless of our politics.
06:25Charles, we've got about a minute left.
06:26You are a frontier investor.
06:27You mentioned that you've been to Ukraine recently, been to Syria as well.
06:31How does this country, how does Venezuela compare to those or other kind of frontier economies you've visited to and
06:36invested in?
06:37What makes this unique?
06:39Venezuela has two advantages that no other country in the world, frontier or other, has, frankly,
06:45which is first, they're sitting on the world's largest oil reserves.
06:48They have a guaranteed income stream.
06:50The only variable is how much faster that income stream will grow as they increase output.
06:55I'm very optimistic on that.
06:57Secondly, the United States government, this administration, is fully invested in the future of Venezuela, which is their economic success,
07:05central to which is foreign investment.
07:07Those are two advantages no other country in the world has.
07:10And again, I think we need to understand it will be a little bumpy from here.
07:14They just had a major political change three months ago.
07:17But I think that Venezuela will surprise on the upside for investors.
07:21The bonds are already reflecting that.
07:22The defaulted bonds, take a look at the Caracas Stock Exchange.
07:26It was one of the most liquid in the world pre-Chavez, sorry, in Latin America pre-Chavez.
07:31There's a lot of opportunity in oil and gas, construction, ports, infrastructure, consumer goods, banking, insurance, and payments.
07:39I'm very optimistic on Venezuela.
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