REVOLUTION FIRST AT GOV DEPOSIT GUARANTEE FUND

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 002060

SIPDIS


STATE FOR WHA/AND
NSC FOR CBARTON
TREASURY FOR OASIA-GIANLUCA SIGNORELLI
HQ USSOUTHCOM FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/21/2014
TAGS: ECON EFIN PGOV VE
SUBJECT: REVOLUTION FIRST AT GOV DEPOSIT GUARANTEE FUND

REF: CARACAS 2034

Classified By: ECON COUNSELOR RICHARD M. SANDERS FOR REASON 1.5 (D)

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SUMMARY
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1. (U) FOGADE (Banking Protection Guarantee Fund,
FDIC-equivalent) President Jesus Caldera Infante proposed
raising the assessment (paid by banks) on all bank account
deposits from 0.5% to 2.0%. Industry experts say that this
will force up interest rates, though Caldera disagrees. With
the extra income, he proposed that 30% of FOGADE's income be
designated for spending on social needs, and announced that
several employees have been fired for not being supportive of
social development. A fired employee says the dismissal was
solely for signing the presidential recall petition. END
SUMMARY.

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FOGADE OFFERS FUNDS FOR SOCIAL SPENDING, FIRES EMPLOYEES
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2. (U) Jesus Caldera Infante, former appeals court judge and
President of FOGADE since May 7, testified before the Finance
Committee of the National Assembly on June 14 and proposed
that his institution take on a more activist role in social
development within Venezuela. He suggested spending 30% of
its income on social needs, and also to quadruple the deposit
assessment (a quarterly premium on all new banking deposits,
to help guarantee funds in bank accounts) - from 0.5% to 2% -
to earn more money for that end. He intends that the money
"be designated to the ends and commitments of the State:
health, education, housing, educational quality of life,
encouragement of social and productive work, popular
alternative economy, the creation of culture, and to perform
teaching and academic exercises so that Venezuelans in the
informal economy and who not deposit or save in the financial
system do so." Caldera, during his testimony, cited his
interpretation of the Venezuelan Constitution, the
Inter-American Human Rights Convention and the International
Pact on Social Rights (apparently the UN International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights),and stated
that they should have precedence over the existing Banking
Law.


3. (U) Caldera also stated that FOGADE had fired a number of
people, but did not specify how many, saying only that "We
have removed 80% of the previous structure," apparently
meaning management. He blamed the fired managers for
"dragging along a culture not consistent with the project
laid out in the Constitution for the social development of
the nation." Caldera also requested greater autonomy for
FOGADE, but also for more authority in the presidency.
Finally, he discussed the recent donation by FOGADE of over
300 pieces of real property (acquired following the 1994-5
banking failures) to "Mision Vuelvan Caras," a GOV
anti-unemployment project, claiming that writing them off as
a loss was not harmful to Venezuela.

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PRIVATE SECTOR RESPONDS
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4. (U) Caldera gave assurances, based on an internal study,
that the measures would not cause interest rates to rise, as
had happened in the past when premiums have been hiked. The
study took less than a month, and he justified such speed by
the "revolutionary and bolivarian management" by
characterizing them as "qualified and very expert." National
Banking Association (ABV) President Aristides Maza, also in
Finance Committee testimony, countered that lending interest
rates would rise 2% as a direct result of the premium
increase. "As the policy of everyone, both the public and
private sectors, is to lower the lending rate, then this
proposal seems incongruous."


5. (C) Caldera asserted that the banking sector "is
unqualified for public service, that is, the collective
interest is tended by a private entity," therefore FOGADE
should act in its stead to force a public service role upon

it. Maza disputed this idea, and said the role of FOGADE is
to protect the public interest by managing their assets.
Maza warned that "one cannot define the financial sector as a
public service given that it is a mercantile activity."
Oscar Carvallo, head economist of the ABV, privately told
econoff that banking as a public service is "an aberration,"
given that banks must discriminate (by choosing to whom to
loan money) in order to survive. He also believes that this
theme of public service is the beginning of a plan to place
additional requirements on banks. That may have begun, as
the GOV just required all banks to provide restrooms to their
clients, and has recently discussed publicly the idea of
setting banks' working hours. Carvallo suggested that the
GOV is placing laws and "justice" (its own definition of it,
that is) on equal footing, and applying the one which is more
expeditious at the moment.


6. (SBU) One of the fired FOGADE employees, Anna Kosa (a
former Embassy employee),spoke publicly about the firings,
calling them politically motivated. She stated that 50
people had been released, all of whom had signed the
presidential referendum petition. This followed a list
published by members of Bolivarian Circles, listing all
FOGADE employees and their perceived political allegiance, as
well as harassing phone calls and notes. She stated that her
dismissal letter, signed by Caldera, gave no reason for the
termination.

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COMMENT
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7. (C) Caldera, newly named to the job, may have been
posturing for the Congress (and the cameras). Nonetheless,
this proposal represents yet another effort to divert state
institutions away from their primary mission and turn them
into piggy banks for the social "revolution." Though the
amount of money involved (at 30% of current budget, FOGADE
would only have $42 million for social projects) pales in
comparison to the PDVSA social fund (see ref),it amounts to
a disguised tax increase on the banking sector, which would
inevitably be passed on to consumers who already pay a 0.5%
tax on all withdrawals. It also raises the issue of
decapitalizing FOGADE at a time in which several small
domestically-owned banks are considered to be fairly wobbly.
If they go under and FOGADE's resources have been diverted to
social (read: electoral) spending, any bailout of depositors
would be that much more difficult.
SHAPIRO


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2004CARACA02060 - CONFIDENTIAL