June 14 (Reuters) – Investment bank is making a late bid to dislodge Centerview Partners as ’s financial adviser to oversee one of the largest-ever sovereign debt restructurings at a lower fee, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday.
Lazard has proposed a fee of $25 million, a fraction of the at least $150 million Centerview was negotiating with the government as recently as last month, Bloomberg reported, citing a letter sent on Friday to interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez.
Reuters could not verify the report. Lazard, Centerview and Venezuela’s Ministry of Communication and Information did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Caracas in May said it hired U.S.-headquartered financial services firm Centerview after launching a restructuring of its sovereign debt and that of state oil firm PDVSA, lifting bond prices.
Centerview had discussed a monthly retainer of $750,000 and a success fee of 0.1% of the total debt amount restructured, equating to a price of $150 million to $200 million, the Bloomberg report said, citing a draft contract.
However, Reuters earlier reported that the appointment of Centerview without a formal competitive process has raised questions among investors and officials about fairness and transparency.
Venezuela is one of the world’s largest sovereign default cases, with the sovereign and PDVSA totaling about $60 billion in defaulted bonds outstanding. Analysts estimate total liabilities, including arbitration awards and accrued interest, could exceed $150 billion.
Venezuela’s adviser will be tasked with hammering out the government’s financial strategy and leading talks on its debt, which the country defaulted on under former President Nicolas Maduro in 2017. At stake are billions of dollars Venezuela owes to creditors earmarked for a writedown, whose size will be crucial in determining the sustainability of the country’s finances and its economic health.
