Dozens of investors, including hedge fund managers, energy investors and other asset holders, are preparing trips to Venezuela over the coming weeks with the aim of conducting on-the-ground due diligence and meeting senior figures in the country’s interim government and business community. Event organizers and participants described three separate investor delegations being arranged by advisory firms, with New Jersey-based Trans-National Research and Caracas-based Orinoco Research adding to a Signum Global Advisors effort that has already been disclosed publicly.
The accelerating investor interest follows a U.S. action in January involving former President Nicolas Maduro and a recent bilateral move in which Washington and Caracas agreed to re-establish diplomatic ties. Venezuela, home to what organizers describe as the world’s largest proven oil reserves and carrying more than $100 billion in debt that will need restructuring, has become a focus for investors looking at prospects across mining, energy, finance, real estate and tourism.
Organizers and trip timing
One of the trips, scheduled for March 16-17, is being organized by Trans-National Research, according to a source familiar with the arrangements. Marc Zeepvat, president and head of research at Trans-National, confirmed the outing but would not confirm precise dates or a detailed agenda. He described Trans-National as a firm that helps investors cultivate relationships in so-called frontier markets and said the immediate objective for visiting investors is to better assess both macroeconomic conditions and political stability.
Orinoco Research, a boutique Caracas-based advisory, is planning a separate investor trip in April, said Elias Ferrer, the founder of Orinoco. Ferrer said senior-level Venezuelan officials will attend private meetings he is coordinating, and he expects many participants to be bondholders keen to exchange information and evaluate prospects for the country’s debt restructuring. Ferrer also said oil and real estate investors have signed up for the Orinoco trip.
Signum Global Advisors is organizing a two-day conference from March 22-24 in Venezuela and has drawn 55 participants, Signum’s chairman and founder Charles Myers said. Myers noted that roughly half of those attending the Signum event are asset managers and hedge funds, many of which hold or have recently acquired Venezuelan sovereign or state oil company PDVSA debt, both of which have been in default since 2017.
Who is going and what they want to see
Jesse Cole, president of Sky Drop Capital and a Miami-based investor who previously operated a manufacturing facility in Venezuela, said he plans to join one of the delegations. "It’s a coiled spring of opportunity," Cole said, adding that he sees potential across energy, finance and technology investments. Cole, who left Venezuela in 2011 after a period of government expropriations under the late President Hugo Chavez led many foreign investors to depart, said he now senses rapid improvement in conditions and interest from private wealth offices and private equity groups looking to commit $25 million to $100 million apiece.
Orinoco’s Ferrer said most attendees signing up for his two-day April event are Americans and that his firm is assisting participants in obtaining visas. Ferrer also said the Orinoco program, which carries a $7,000 per person fee, will be followed by an optional trip to Los Roques, an archipelago known for clear waters, white sand and rustic posadas.
Trans-National is advertising sessions that include meetings with Finance Minister Anabel Pereira and central bank policymaker Laura Guerra, according to a source briefed on the draft agenda. Orinoco’s draft agenda reportedly lists Mining Minister Hector Silva and Caracas stock exchange CEO Jose Grasso. One itinerary that circulated among investors includes Delcy Rodriguez, the acting president formerly Maduro’s deputy, and PDVSA CEO Hector Obragon for two events, the investor source said.
Official engagement and U.S. comments
The White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers described activity among critical minerals, mining, and oil and gas companies as moving at what she termed "Trump speed" to invest in newly accessible Venezuelan markets. Rogers said U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum met with Delcy Rodriguez and a range of investors during a trip to Venezuela, remarking that the visit marked "rapid progress" and highlighted strong interest in getting capital flowing back into the country.
Signum’s Charles Myers emphasized Venezuela’s advantages, including its energy endowment and U.S. backing, as reasons many asset managers and hedge funds are taking part in his group’s program.
Debt, defaults and the investment calculus
Investor organizers and participants stressed that a central element of the visits is to better understand the prospects for Venezuela’s debt restructuring. The country and its state oil company have been in default since 2017, and holders of that debt want clarity on timelines, negotiating counterparts and likely recovery scenarios. Participants planning to attend the Orinoco and Signum programs include bondholders who want to gather information and share ideas about restructuring pathways.
Marc Zeepvat cautioned that while the trips are intended to facilitate relationship-building and fact-finding, sanctions and regulatory limits remain a major constraint. "The obvious focus for them (the investors) is to get a handle on both macroeconomic and political stability," Zeepvat said. He also noted that current restrictions mean actual transactions are constrained; investors and advisors must avoid providing services or advice to sanctioned individuals or entities.
Zeepvat said, "Actual transactions, for the moment, remain out of the question," stressing the need to avoid consulting or doing business with sanctioned counterparties until those legal hurdles are resolved.
Cautions from some market participants
Not all market participants are ready to travel. Petar Atanasov, co-head of sovereign research at Gramercy Funds Management, a hedge fund with long-term holdings in Venezuela, said his firm is holding off on travel for now. "As things continue to hopefully normalize, potentially we can see that happening in the not so distant future," Atanasov said, adding that some investors remain hesitant about the situation on the ground.
Sanctions remain an explicit barrier, with Washington not yet lifting measures that cover acting President Delcy Rodriguez and other senior policy makers, a factor that investment organizers and legal advisers say must shape any engagement or subsequent deal-making.
Practicalities and participant mix
Organizers say the investor delegations will draw a mix of participants, from hedge funds and asset managers to private equity groups, high net-worth individuals and family offices. Signum’s event has attracted a reported 55 participants and is intended to give attendees an opportunity to hear directly from Venezuelan officials and corporate leaders. Orinoco’s founder said oil and real estate investors are also among those who have signed up for meetings.
The structure of the trips combines formal briefings with private meetings and, in Orinoco’s case, an optional recreational element designed to showcase Venezuela’s tourism assets. Organizers emphasized that the visits are intended primarily for information gathering, relationship development and assessment of restructuring prospects rather than immediate deal execution.
Outlook
Investor interest in Venezuela has been revived by recent diplomatic developments and high-profile U.S. engagement. Organizers and delegates are positioning these trips as an early opportunity to assess on-the-ground conditions, meet officials and company executives, and form views on potential investments if and when legal and political constraints ease. For now, sanctions and outstanding questions about the debt restructuring process mean that many investors are proceeding with caution even as they seek direct access to Venezuelan decision-makers and information.
In a marketplace where energy resources, mining potential and tourism appeal are all prominent themes, the delegations represent an initial step by international capital to evaluate opportunities that could arise from a changing political and diplomatic backdrop.