Russ Dallen

Dallen was a member of the International Law section of the New York State Bar Association. He served on the board of the Truman Scholars Association and the Rosenthal Fellowship Advisory Board He was a speaker at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law in 2019.

In early 2016, Dallen began warning that Venezuela would default on its billions in foreign debt, telling Reuters that "It is a question of when, not if," and noting that "The only thing that could change that is a sharp recovery in oil prices, and/or a bailout from Venezuela's friends in China, Russia or Iran."

Dallen's investing was chronicled by the Financial Times in a 2014 article, saying, "…The basket of defaulted Argentina bonds, bought by Dallen for clients last year when they were trading for 30 something cents on the dollar, rose through the mid 1980s to reach a bid price of 90 cents on the dollar." He sold them at 150, quintupling his clients' and firm's investments.

In Venezuela, Dallen began pointing out shortages, including being the first to point out most famously the toilet paper shortage—in January 2013 when oil was above $100 a barrel and warning of the economic collapse that would come. At the same time, Dallen was able to double investments of his firm and clients in Harvest Natural Resources (NYSE: HNR) in one month before taking profits and earn a 60% return in 6 months in Venezuelan Koch brothers entity Fertinitro.

In 2003 he bought the English-language Venezuela newspaper The Daily Journal, becoming its president and editor–in–chief from 2003 to 2006. He then became its President Emeritus. When The Daily Journal ceased publication in 2008, its successor was the online newspaper, the Latin American Herald Tribune. Dallen was editor–in–chief of the Latin American Herald Tribune.

Dallen was head of the investment bank Caracas Capital Markets, managing partner at family office Ophiuchus Capital Management, strategic advisor to the exchange-traded Venezuela Opportunity Fund. From 2000 to 2007, he was head of the Latin American office of investment bank Oppenheimer & Co. in Caracas, Venezuela. He then oversaw capital market activities for BBO, a Venezuelan investment bank.

Dallen was named a Foreign and Commonwealth Office Scholar to the University of Oxford where he received a M.A. in law. His master's thesis at Oxford, "An Overview of European Community Protection of Human Rights, with some Special References to the U.K.", was named Article of the Year by the Common Market Law Review and published in book and journal form by them in 1990. He also received a diploma in international law from Nottingham University.

Dallen attended the University of Mississippi where he received a B.A. in economics and political science in 1985. While there, he was a member of St. Anthony Hall and worked for the local paper The Oxford Eagle. In 1983, he was awarded the $40,000 Harry S. Truman Scholarship, making Dallen the first Truman Scholar from the University of Mississippi.

Dallen was as a paperboy for The Times-Picayune of New Orleans as a teenager. In high school, he was the editor of a weekly eight-page section of the Sun Herald. In 1981 when he was a senior in high school, Dallen was named an Outstanding Future Leaders at the National Century III Leaders Conference, a scholarship program sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

Russell Morris Dallen Jr. or Russ Dallen (January 20, 1963 – September 17, 2021) was an American economist, financial advisor, international lawyer, publisher, and journalist. From 2000 to 2007, he was head of the Latin American office of investment bank Oppenheimer & Co. in Caracas, Venezuela.