Yahoo Finance Venezuela demands access to gold held by Bank of England
Crisis-hit Venezuela's central bank has launched legal action against the Bank of England in a bid to access gold bullion worth more than £831m.
The bank has asked for the gold to be transferred to the United Nations as a matter of urgency to fund healthcare equipment, medicine and food during the pandemic, according to a claim filed in the London courts.
Threadneedle Street has resisted until now because the South American country's ruling regime is not recognised as legitimate by Britain.
Venezuela has recorded 749 coronavirus cases and 10 deaths, piling further pressure on an economy already ravaged by hyperinflation, plummeting oil prices and the hard-left policies of its leadership.
Doctors have warned that there will be "carnage" if the virus takes hold as the healthcare system was already facing a critical shortage of staff and supplies.
One nurse told The Telegraph in March that the only face mask she could find cost $35 and her monthly salary was $15.
Venezuela has been suffering a deepening political and economic catastrophe under Nicolas Maduro, who has been attempting to repatriate the gold from the vaults since 2018.
The bullion in London makes up about 15pc of Venezuela's foreign currency reserves. Last year the Bank of England was urged not to hand over the gold by opposition leader Juan Guaido, who said the funds would be used to "repress and brutalise the Venezuelan people".
Sarosh Zaiwalla, a lawyer representing Venezuela's central bank, claimed that foot-dragging by the Bank of England is hampering the country's efforts to combat coronavirus.
He said: "The Venezuelan people are deeply threatened by this pandemic given the collapse in oil prices and the effects of US economic sanctions on the country."
The legal claim against the bank follows a request for the gold in April.
A Bank of England spokesman declined to comment.
