On October 13, the Executive branch extended for thirty days the deadline to accept the restructuring of the sovereign debt, a swap deal offered on September 16 to holders of bonds issued by the National State. The measure also applies to the bondholders of state-owned companies PDVSA and Electricidad de Caracas. The offer is set to be valid until November 13.

The proposal consists of an “interruption agreement” applicable to interest and capital payments on sovereign debt due to the Executive branch’s alleged problems in repaying its obligations, due to the financial sanctions imposed by the United States. The initiative will only work if 75% of the total amount of bond holders accept the offer.

Although a part of Venezuela’s public debt is owned by China and Russia, U.S. bondholders may have greater difficulty in renegotiating the bonds due to the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on the South American country. Therefore, the Venezuelan Executive expressed its commitment to “collaborate with the bondholders requiring regulatory approval to renegotiate the debt.”