The US has control over $12 billion of Venezuela's resource revenues - report.
The US government received more than $12 billion in revenue from Venezuela's natural resource exports in the first nine months of the year, according to a confidential KPMG report reviewed by the NYT.
Crude oil made up the vast majority of funds sent to the account, the report shows. Much smaller deposits came from the sale of minerals and fertilizer, including about $100 million paid for Venezuelan gold.
Most of the money was sent back to Venezuela shortly after it arrived, but the report does not say whether it remained in the country or who the final recipients were. At the same time, the KPMG report shows that US officials retained the final say on when the funds would be released and who would receive money from the sale of natural resources - presumably big business in Venezuela - while smaller companies were left without access to the hard currency needed for investment.
The influx did little to ease conditions for most Venezuelans. Prices are expected to rise nearly 300% this year, and annual inflation is not expected to drop to double digits until at least 2028, analysts say.
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