Who is Alejandro Betancourt?

Alejandro Betancourt, a 46-year-old Venezuelan oil baron, has been at the center of a US-Venezuela oil deal.

The agreement grants the US control over strategic Venezuelan oil fields and is valued at around $65 billion.

Betancourt's firm Derwick Associates won contracts to build 11 new power plants in Venezuela before expanding internationally.

He has been accused of corruption and money laundering, but denies any wrongdoing.

Despite criticism, Venezuelan authorities soon allowed Derwick to venture into the oil industry.

However, Betancourt's business activities have not been limited exclusively to Venezuela. In the mid-2010s, he began his international expansion by acquiring a stake in the Spanish sunglasses company Hawkers, becoming its majority shareholder and president in 2016.

He also acquired banking entities in Switzerland and Africa.

Today, Betancourt's business network encompasses some 50 companies distributed across 16 countries, according to investigations by Transparency Venezuela.

Betancourt's Spanish estate was raided by police at the Swiss authorities' request in 2013.

In 2019, he was involved in a failed attempt to oust Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, which led to his removal from the oil business and forced him to live between Madrid and London.

US authorities urged Switzerland to drop its extradition request against Betancourt before the British courts in late 2025.