WASHINGTON – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has acknowledged that Washington’s control of Venezuelan assets extends beyond accounts holding proceeds from oil sales, as questions intensify in Congress over the value, location and management of Venezuela’s sovereign resources.
The issue surfaced during Bessent’s September 15 testimony before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, where Democratic Representative Sean Casten pressed the Treasury secretary for details about Venezuelan assets under U.S. control.
During the exchange, Bessent indicated that the assets involved are broader than Venezuelan oil-sale proceeds and include a larger portfolio. The discussion included assets connected to gold and other financial holdings.
Casten repeatedly sought a clear accounting of how much Venezuelan money and other assets are currently under U.S. control and how those resources are being administered.
Bessent did not provide a total figure, indicating instead that an audit is underway to establish the extent and status of the assets.
The exchange adds to an ongoing dispute in Washington over transparency surrounding Venezuelan funds. Earlier this year, Casten and Representative Joaquin Castro introduced legislation seeking an independent Government Accountability Office audit of the administration’s handling of Venezuelan oil proceeds. Casten’s office said at the time that Congress lacked sufficient information about where the funds were held, how they were controlled and how disbursements were authorized.
The latest testimony broadens that debate beyond oil.
If the portfolio includes Venezuelan gold interests and other financial assets, determining its full value could be considerably more complicated than simply accounting for proceeds from crude sales.
The central legal distinction is that U.S. custody or control does not by itself mean that Venezuelan sovereign assets have become U.S. property. Questions therefore remain about the legal authority governing their administration, where the assets are being held, who can authorize transactions involving them and ultimately how they are to be returned or used for Venezuela.
Those questions are particularly significant because of the scale Bessent himself suggested during the congressional exchange, describing the Venezuelan holdings as one of the largest assets ever placed on the U.S. balance sheet.
Independent auditing is expected to become central to determining exactly what is involved.
The Central Bank of Venezuela previously said that Caracas and Washington had engaged independent firms to audit Venezuelan assets held abroad, including foreign-exchange and gold-related transactions.
The congressional scrutiny comes as Venezuela’s oil and mining sectors are undergoing major changes. This week, Venezuelan authorities signed new agreements involving U.S. investors in both sectors, including a major gold-mining project and an agreement involving PDVSA and Continental Resources to explore development of the Ayacucho 2 oil block in the Orinoco Belt.
The growing commercial activity makes a complete inventory of Venezuela’s existing assets and financial flows increasingly important.
For Congress, the unanswered questions are now straightforward but potentially far-reaching: how much Venezuelan wealth is under U.S. control, where is it being held, under what legal authority is it being administered, who decides how the money is used and when will a complete accounting become available?
Bessent’s testimony established that the portfolio is broader than oil proceeds alone. The audit will now be critical in establishing its actual size and determining how Venezuela’s sovereign resources have been managed.