Paraguay’s President Peña Faces Impeachment Over Ueno Bank Collapse
Paraguay’s Chamber of Deputies opened a rare session on Thursday to determine whether or not to question President Santiago Peña, two days after the central financial institution took over Ueno Bank, one of many nation’s largest lenders.
The political strain escalated hours earlier than the session. The ruling Colorado Party backed an impeachment trial towards Peña, its chief and Peña’s mentor, former president Horacio Cartes (2013 to 2018), introduced in a press release on X.
“We assist the impeachment trial of the President of the Republic, Santiago Peña, in an effort to put the Republic’s establishments again on monitor,” Cartes wrote.
From Bank Failure to Impeachment
Paraguay’s Central Bank (BCP) ordered the intervention and dissolution of Ueno on Tuesday, after discovering that its solvency ratio had dropped beneath 50% of the required minimal. The financial institution had 2.9 million shoppers in a rustic of 6.1 million individuals.
The freeze hit public cash as effectively. The resolution locked about $380 million belonging to the Social Security Institute (IPS), together with deposits from roughly 32,000 retirees, together with funds from state energy utility ANDE and the binational Itaipú dam.
On Wednesday, opposition lawmakers and dissidents from the ruling celebration filed the impeachment request towards Peña and Vice President Pedro Alliana beneath Article 225 of Paraguay’s Constitution, backed by 35 signatures. The submitting accuses Peña of poor efficiency of his duties and likewise questions a attainable battle of curiosity and the expansion of his private property.
“Two out of each three Paraguayans can’t use their cash at this time, and the primary individual accountable is Santiago Peña. Even his allies know that,” impartial deputy Raúl Rubín informed reporters.
Peña’s Ties to the Bank
Peña held shares in Ueno Holding, which he offered in April 2025, based on native media. He has stated he had no hyperlink to the financial institution itself.
The central financial institution’s management additionally got here beneath fireplace. BCP president Carlos Carvallo had chaired Financiera Ueno, the financial institution’s predecessor, earlier than taking up the central financial institution in 2023. He has introduced his resignation, and Peña requested Congress to verify Raúl Vera Bogado as his alternative.
Meanwhile, police detained eight Ueno executives, together with CEO Miguel Vázquez and chairman Juan Manuel Gustale, in a case involving breach of belief, misconduct throughout a disaster and fraud.
What Depositors Can Expect
Paraguay’s deposit assure fund covers as much as 75 month-to-month minimal wages per individual, about 228.3 million guaraníes (roughly $38,622).
Peña stated an emergency legislation would cowl 98% of the financial institution’s depositors, with funds beginning this week. The central financial institution has arrange an official page for depositors to verify their payouts.
“I earnestly ask all political sectors to place the pursuits of savers forward of some other curiosity,” Peña stated in an deal with on Wednesday.
What Happens Next
Under the Constitution, two-thirds of the Chamber of Deputies should approve the fees earlier than the case strikes to the Senate, which acts because the courtroom. Removal from workplace additionally requires a two-thirds majority within the Senate. That means no less than 30 of the 45 senators.
The disaster has political penalties past Peña. Dissident Colorado deputy Mauricio Espínola warned that if Peña stays, the celebration has little or no likelihood of holding on to energy within the 2028 presidential election.
For Latin American savers, the episode provides to an extended checklist of causes to mistrust native banks, a theme BeInCrypto has explored in its protection of how the area is moving into digital dollars and the way stablecoins made it easier for capital to leave.
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