Leopoldo Alejandro Betancourt López was born in Caracas in 1980.
He is an economist and businessman and is part of the group known as “bolichicos”, a term used in Venezuela for young entrepreneurs who built large fortunesthrough public contracts during the governments of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro.
His business breakthrough came with Derwick Associates, a company he founded with Pedro Trebbau and other partners.
Although the company had little initial experience in the energy sector, it secured contracts to build thermoelectric plants during Venezuela’s electricity emergency.
According to various journalistic investigations, Derwick obtained at least 11 public contracts without bidding, with an estimated value between $2 billion and $5 billion.
Transparency Venezuela has pointed to alleged overpricing and issues with the promised capacity at some facilities. Betancourt and his associates have denied the corruption allegations.
After building his fortune in Venezuela, Betancourt moved much of his investments abroad.
In 2021, Reuters reported that he had invested more than $300 million in companies and properties in various countries.
In Spain, he became especially well-known through Hawkers, the sunglasses company.
In 2016, his investment group O’Hara Administration participated in a €50 million funding round to support the company’s international expansion.
Later, Betancourt became president of Hawkers and took majority control through his business structure.
But sunglasses are not his only business in Spain. He has also been linked to Auro New Transport, one of the main VTC license holders, as well as investments in energy, banking, technology, and real estate.
Among his best-known properties is the El Alamín estate in Toledo, which includes a castle and thousands of acres.
What is Alejandro Betancourt’s connection to Delcy Rodríguez?
The latest chapter in Alejandro Betancourt’s story is directly tied to oil.
According to reports published in recent weeks, the businessman is said to have returned to Caracas to informally advise Delcy Rodríguez on strategic matters for Venezuela.
These include:
Restoring oil production.
Attracting investment from the United States.
Restarting mining projects.
Restructuring Venezuelan debt.
However, it is important to clarify: Caracas has not confirmed that Betancourt is an official adviser to Delcy Rodríguez.
According to reports, his influence is related to business contacts, political mediation, and involvement in private oil companies.
Betancourt is said to have traveled to Venezuela several times during June and July 2026. El País documented his arrival in Caracas on June 27, from Palm Beach on a private jet.
The Possible Link Between Delcy Rodríguez and Donald Trump
One reason Alejandro Betancourt has drawn renewed attention is his alleged role as a go-between for the Delcy Rodríguez government and the Donald Trump administration.
Mauricio Claver-Carone, identified as an informal envoy of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio for Venezuela, acknowledged that U.S. officials used Betancourt as an intermediary.
The businessman reportedly has something valuable for both sides: he knows the Venezuelan oil sector and maintains business and political contacts in the United States.
His role would focus on facilitating talks about restoring oil production, bringing in U.S. capital, and operations that could take place under the sanctions regime.
In short, Betancourt could serve as a bridge between the interests of Caracas and Washington.
What Oil Interests Does Alejandro Betancourt Have?
Betancourt’s influence is also tied to NABEP, considered one of the largest private oil companies in Venezuela.
According to available information, Betancourt is its main shareholder. In addition, a group close to the businessman reportedly bought for about $300 million the minority stake held by American Harry Sargeant III.
His name is also linked to projects with Petrocedeño, Petrocabimas, and Petrosur, as well as operations in oil fields in Zulia state.
Thus, the businessman is once again close to one of Venezuela’s most important assets: its oil industry.
Why Is Spain Investigating Alejandro Betancourt?
As his business influence grows, Spanish authorities continue to investigate Betancourt.
Judge Santiago Pedraz of the National Court is investigating the businessman and five other Venezuelan citizens for alleged money laundering and tax crimes.
The investigation began after a cooperation request sent in September 2024 by the Zurich Prosecutor’s Office, as part of the so-called “Operation Bolívar.”
The case is linked to a 2012 transaction between PDVSA and Administradora Atlantic.
According to the investigation, the loan was issued in bolivars and was to be repaid in dollars using the official Venezuelan exchange rate. The large difference between that rate and the real value of the currency reportedly generated multimillion-dollar profits.
Investigators estimate that the alleged fraudulent transaction totaled $4.85 billion and claim that about $42 million in bribes were paid to three Venezuelan officials.
The National Court is seeking to determine whether some of that money ended up in Europe through properties, companies, shares, bank accounts, and investments in Spain.
But this is important: a judicial investigation does not equal a conviction. Betancourt remains under investigation and has not been convicted in Spain in connection with these events.
In March 2026, Judge Santiago Pedraz temporarily closed the investigation.
The judge found that Venezuelan authorities had already reviewed the loan between PDVSA and Administradora Atlantic and determined the transaction was legal.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office appealed the decision, arguing that Venezuelan authorities had not investigated exactly the same facts as those being examined in Spain.
The Criminal Chamber of the National Court ultimately sided with the Prosecutor’s Office and ordered the case reopened.
As a result, Alejandro Betancourt remains under investigation.
His return does not erase the ongoing legal investigations. On the contrary, it raises a new question:
How has a businessman whose fortune and operations linked to PDVSA are still under judicial review become a key figure for Venezuelan authorities and a possible link to the Donald Trump administration?
In 2025, the businessman again made headlines when he was detained twice by British police in London, where he had settled in recent years.
A few days later, Spanish authorities raided Alamín Castle, a palatial estate that Betancourt owned in the province of Toledo.
Both swoops were reportedly linked to an investigation into alleged money laundering initiated by the Swiss public prosecutor’s office.
Right place, right time
According to the Washington Post, US authorities urged Switzerland to drop its extradition request against the businessman before the British courts.
The request was granted by the Swiss authorities, and last May a London court lifted the travel ban placed upon him.
“Switzerland did not present the evidence requested by the English judges to support its extradition request, and therefore the travel ban was lifted,” Betancourt’s lawyer told BBC News Mundo, while acknowledging this does not necessarily mean the end of the Swiss investigations.
According to Axios, in the first minutes after the military operation on 3 January that concluded with US forces seizing Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, Betancourt spoke with then-Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez and convinced her to speak with Rubio.
This version was corroborated by his lawyer.
“He acted as an intermediary,” said Sale. “He had nothing to do with Maduro’s departure, but since he had everyone’s trust, he became an intermediary.”
On Wednesday, Delcy Rodríguez, now interim president of Venezuela, defended Betancourt, saying he has no pending cases in that country or the US.
“Often a person is judged in the media before in the courts,” she said in the oil baron’s defence.
For those who have followed Betancourt’s career for years, one thing is clear.
“He’s very skillful,” Boyd concluded.
“He always manages to be where he needs to be to avoid problems and make money.”
Retired, living in the Scottish Borders after living most of my life in cities in England. I can now indulge my interest in all aspects of living close to nature in a wild landscape. I live on what was once the Iapetus Ocean which took millions of years to travel from the Southern Hemisphere to here in the Northern Hemisphere. That set me thinking and questioning and seeking answers.
In 1998 I co-wrote Millennium Countdown (US)/ A Business Guide to the Year 2000 (UK) see https://www.abebooks.co.uk/products/isbn/9780749427917
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