Venezuela, the South American country with the world's largest proven oil reserves, is restoring official relations with the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank after a seven-year break. The agreement, announced on Friday 17 April by Venezuela's Economy Minister, paves the way for financial normalisation under the government of Nicolas Maduro, as the country emerges from a long economic crisis marked by hyperinflation and a GDP collapse.

The IMF had not conducted an Article IV consultation mission (the IMF's standard annual macroeconomic review of its members) since 2004. The World Bank had not approved a new loan since 2005. The thaw should allow Caracas to access the $5bn of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs, the IMF's reserve asset) allocated in 2021 but frozen due to diplomatic recognition issues — the United States and several European countries having contested the legitimacy of the Maduro government after the 2018 presidential election.

The scope of the reset is limited at first: technical-assistance missions, macroeconomic surveillance, dialogue on monetary stabilisation. Large-scale financial programmes would require prior restructuring of external debt, estimated above $150bn across all creditors (sovereign bonds, state oil company PDVSA, arrears). For bond markets and oil-industry creditors, the rapprochement is the first signal that Venezuela is being readmitted into the international financial architecture. Source: Les Echos, 17 April 2026, Claude Fouquet.