Swiss government freezes assets tied to Venezuela's Maduro

Any assets in Switzerland belonging to Venezuelan head of state Nicolás Maduro, who has been arrested by the United States, will be frozen with immediate effect as a precautionary measure. This was decided by the Swiss government on Monday. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox According to a statement from the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), the Swiss government wants to ensure that no assets belonging to Maduro and other people close to him can flow out. Members of the current government of Venezuela are not affected by the freeze, it added. The freeze is an addition to the sanctions against Venezuela that have been in place since 2018. These already included asset freezes. According to the FDFA, the new freezes are aimed at people who have not yet been sanctioned in Switzerland. The basis for this step is the Act on the Freezing and Restitution of Illicit Assets held by Foreign Politically Exposed Persons (FIAA). According to the FDFA, the ...