Venezuela Completes $800m Buyback

Venezuela has bought back more than $800m in external debt, according to local and wire reports citing an announcement from its finance minister. The purchases, done through the Bandes state development bank, were not announced formally and targeted the global 2027s and other bonds. Venezuela had been widely expected to buy back up to $1.5bn of its own debt for several months, and is possibly expected to do more. The government also says it was speaking to Ecuador and would respect any decision it made about repaying debt. Venezuela is thought to have exposure in first to default notes whose underlying is Ecuador debt.