KPMG Report: U.S.-Run Account Took In $12.26 Billion in Venezuelan Export Revenue and Sent Nearly All of It Back

The U.S. government took in $12.26 billion from Venezuelan oil, gold, mineral and fertilizer sales between Jan. 3 and Sept. 30, 2026, and sent nearly all of it back. That is the picture in a KPMG report compiled for the government, whose contents the New York Times first reported on Nov. 10.

The Trump administration says it has returned more than $12 billion, almost 99% of the total. As of Sept. 30, the end of the federal budget year, $168.6 million remained in an escrow account managed by the Treasury Department. The account also earned about $12 million in interest.

How the account works

The "Venezuela Custody Account" was created by the Treasury after U.S. forces captured Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3 and flew him to New York to face drug-trafficking charges. It was first held in Qatar, then moved to Citibank in New York in late January.

Venezuelan crude is sold on the open market and the proceeds go into the U.S.-managed account. Venezuela's central bank then asks for funds to be released. U.S. officials approve the request after checking it against financial integrity criteria.

The report says "the U.S. government established custodial control over Venezuelan natural resources revenue deposits" this year. Each transaction had to be signed off by officials from both the State Department and the Treasury.

Where the money went

About $11.7 billion went to prop up the bolívar through foreign-currency auctions at Venezuelan commercial banks. That figure is in line with an estimate from the Venezuelan consultancy Síntesis Financiera, which put government spending on currency auctions at $12.3 billion over the same nine months.

Roughly $130 million paid the Venezuelan government's foreign bills, mostly debts to other governments and international organizations. Specific approved payments include $8.7 million to settle vaccine-procurement debts with the Pan-American Health Organization and nearly $24 million for dialysis and coal-mining equipment. Another $5 million went to the Miami law firm Greenberg Traurig.

The report does not say who ultimately received the auction dollars. It is unclear whether the money stayed in Venezuela.

Who bought the oil

Trafigura and Vitol, which acquired exclusive rights to sell Venezuelan oil after the U.S. operation, accounted for 61% of the money deposited through September. Trafigura alone deposited about $100 million tied to purchases of Venezuelan gold.

The report redacts the names of the 20 companies that bought oil and gold in the first nine months. Each went through U.S. vetting for sanctions compliance and money-laundering controls. Under the previous Venezuelan government, oil funds faced little outside scrutiny.

The custodian argument, and its limits

U.S. officials have said they act as custodians of Venezuela's wealth, not owners of it. The pace of the disbursements, with most of the money released soon after it arrived, is consistent with that description, according to the Times.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said repeatedly that most of Venezuela's oil revenue was lost to corruption and foreign middlemen before Maduro's removal. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has said Washington holds significant leverage over the revenue.

The same report also shows who has the final say. Under Venezuela's Constitution, natural resources belong to Venezuelans. Yet U.S. officials decide when money is released and who gets it.

The Trump administration installed an interim government and charged it with opening the oil industry to American investment, according to the Times. Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela's interim leader, said in January that her government had received $300 million from a U.S.-brokered oil sale, part of a larger $500 million deal.

What the report is not

KPMG says it helped the State Department administer the account, including tracking transactions and applying financial integrity measures. It does not describe itself as an auditor. The report is not the formal audit of Venezuelan oil finances that State Department officials promised earlier this year.

The Treasury, the State Department, KPMG and Venezuela's government did not immediately respond to the Times' requests for comment.

What comes next

The Times reported that Democratic lawmakers repeatedly vowed to bring more transparency and accountability to U.S. policy toward Venezuela. They gain more oversight power in January after winning control of both chambers.

Whether the administration produces the promised formal audit, and whether it names the 20 redacted buyers, are questions that oversight could now force.