A report by Fundación del Río and Expediente Abierto on human rights violations in Nicaragua and their impact on international trade revealed, for the first time, the name of the businessman in charge of importing two of the best-selling Chinese cigarette brands in the country. He has effectively become the “wang” (king in Mandarin) of this market in Nicaragua.
That businessman is Anibal Vladimir Matus Buitrago, spokesperson for the Nicaragua-China Chamber of Industry and Commerce (CCNC), a replica of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), which was dissolved by the Sandinista dictatorship.
The document, presented in response to the Section 301 Investigation by the Office of the United States Trade Representative on Labor Rights, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law in Nicaragua, details that Matus Buitrago is the legal representative of the cigarette brands Modern and Silver Elephant. Before July 2023, these brands entered the country exclusively through smuggling. That year, their low cost allowed them to displace legally operating companies in the Nicaraguan market.
According to La Gaceta, the official government newspaper, published on April 27, 2023, Matus Buitrago applied to the Ministry of Development, Industry, and Trade (MIFIC) to register the Silver Elephant brand. A month earlier, on March 23, he had registered the Modern brand under the name of his company, Importaciones y Exportaciones Andrés Castro S.A.
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“The registration proves that the government was always willing to legalize what was illegal. These Chinese cigarette brands have been sold in the country for years, and despite warnings that they posed a health risk to consumers and were being smuggled, authorities never responded. This outcome was predictable—traditional brands have now been displaced by products of dubious origin that do not meet health standards,” explained a source connected to Nicaragua’s tobacco industry.
DIVERGENTES contacted tobacco industry businessmen about Matus Buitrago. They said they had never dealt with him and that he was a new name in the cigarette business. One of those interviewed mentioned that the CCNC spokesperson was known for having written a thesis titled “Municipal Intervention in the Application of Nicaraguan Environmental Law.”
We also attempted to contact Matus Buitrago for his response to this story, but the phone number we were given was never answered.
That thesis, published at the Central American University (UCA) in 2006, analyzed the effectiveness of municipal intervention in enforcing environmental law in Nicaragua. It examined municipal responsibilities, environmental management tools, and administrative controls to ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
The Collapse of Traditional Brands
In 2020, illegal tobacco brands accounted for 65% of cigarette consumption in Nicaragua, and industry studies indicated the trend was rising. By 2023, industry monitoring revealed that contraband cigarette consumption had surpassed 80% nationwide.
“There hasn’t been another study, but there’s no need. We are now flooded with Chinese cigarettes. Easily, they could account for 95% of the market. The only people still buying our products are a small segment of the population,” said a source in the industry.
A 2023 investigation by DIVERGENTES exposed that Chinese cigarettes entered the country exclusively through smuggling. There was no company officially in charge of their importation. The investigation revealed the entire chain of illegality in Nicaragua, showing not only how the business operated but also how profitable it was—not just for neighborhood shopkeepers but for the entire distribution network.
One of the first locations we visited back then was the infamous “Gancho de Caminos” in the Mercado Oriental. Here, vendors sold the cigarettes openly, without fear of confiscation. Even though a police station was located right in front of the stalls selling the products, vendors showed no concern when officers walked past.
A source within the tobacco industry, speaking on condition of anonymity, explained that Nicaragua was at the mercy of smuggling. Although industry players had reported illegal sales points and the smugglers bringing in the cigarettes, the Sandinista regime never took real action to address the issue. Instead, it allowed the business to expand nationwide.
In 2023, a distributor at the Market sold a box of Modern cigarettes for 13,500 córdobas (about $375), with a carton priced at 270 córdobas. If a buyer purchased three boxes for 40,500 córdobas and resold them for 60,000, they would generate 30,000 córdobas in gross profit per box, totaling 90,000. That year, the net profit margin per three boxes was 49,500 córdobas ($1,375).
But the Market distributor in 2023 made even more. DIVERGENTES collected transaction data, and a major businessman confirmed the figures reported by other industry insiders.
The 50-carton boxes that market vendors sold for 13,500 córdobas were purchased wholesale for just 8,000 córdobas. This meant a profit of 5,500 córdobas ($152) per unit sold. According to the distributor we spoke to, selling 35 boxes generated a profit of $5,320.
Nicaraguan Businesses Swallowed by Chinese Trade
A year and a half after publishing the original investigation, DIVERGENTES reached out to a source in the tobacco industry to get their opinion on the legality now enjoyed by distributors of Chinese cigarette brands in Nicaragua.
“The tax burden they imposed, the silence on smuggling complaints, and the free trade agreement with China, along with the legitimacy now granted to these ‘entrepreneurs,’ all point to one thing: the government always intended to establish a lucrative business for its allies, one that would generate millions while pushing major brands out of the market,” the source explained.
Eighteen months after the initial report, the sale of Chinese cigarettes—along with thousands of other products—has become “normal” in Nicaragua. During a visit to major supermarkets, department stores, and Chinese-owned businesses in the capital, DIVERGENTES confirmed the massive expansion of these establishments, which have flourished since 2023 thanks to the political alliance between the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo and the People’s Republic of China.
“I said it before—we are flooded with these products, and the impact will be even stronger in 2025. There is no competition with national products because Chinese goods are cheaper. The ones who will suffer are small business owners who will either shut down or join them to sell the same products for less profit. It’s a grim outlook for this kind of business,” the tobacco industry source concluded.