Former Paraguayan president Santiago Peña was impeached and charged over his alleged role in the collapse of Ueno Bank. The failure froze the accounts of nearly 3 million Paraguayans, and most affected customers still lack access to their money.
Paraguayan prosecutors on Saturday brought charges against Santiago Peña over his alleged role in a banking crisis and asked that he be placed in preventive custody. Prosecutor Nancy Salomon accused him of "breach of trust and administration for personal gain."
Ueno Bank freeze hits nearly 3 million accounts
The central bank ordered Ueno Bank into resolution on Monday night over insolvency. Nearly 3 million Paraguayans, about 60% of the country's adult population, saw their accounts frozen overnight.
Businesses have reported an overall fall in sales of up to 80% this week. In addition, 300 workers at media outlets in the bank's financial group had their salaries suspended, initially for 90 days, and about 32,000 pensioners whose public pension funds were invested in the bank went without payments.
Peña's ties to Ueno under investigation
Prosecutors are investigating Peña over alleged favouritism towards Ueno, which went from an obscure digital lender to the bank of choice for most Paraguayans after he took office in 2023. Peña held about $1m in shares bought in 2019 in a company that became Ueno Holding in 2022, and he disposed of them only in April 2025. He said he bought them purely as an investor.
Soon after taking office, Peña appointed Carlos Carvallo Spalding, until then Ueno's chief executive, to lead the central bank. Less than three months later, Spalding authorised Ueno to become a digital bank. An estimated $800m to $860m in state and pension funds were invested in the bank.
Peña denies all the allegations, and his lawyers say there is no evidence he directed pension funds to the bank.
Payouts start for small depositors
A guarantee fund covers deposits of up to $38,000, which would apply to more than 90% of individual account holders. On Friday, the central bank began paying customers with up to $1,565, no outstanding debts and an existing account at another institution.
Peña had resigned the day before his impeachment in an attempt to keep the special jurisdiction afforded to former presidents, but lawmakers stripped him of the seat anyway. He will face criminal proceedings in the ordinary courts.
Source: The Guardian
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
