Paraguay’s central bank has taken control of Ueno Bank after inspectors found its capital had fallen below half the legal minimum. Around 3 million customers were affected, and roughly $850 million in public funds were held by the bank, including about $380 million connected to the state pension and health fund. The political connections are raising even more questions. President Santiago Peña previously held shares in Grupo Vázquez, the group controlling Ueno, while his former central bank chief, Carlos Carvallo, previously ran the bank. Peña has offered to resign, but lawmakers rejected the offer, and he now faces criminal investigations and impeachment proceedings. Meanwhile, prosecutors have opened three criminal investigations and are examining whether they need evidence from the United States and Luxembourg. Here’s another detail worth watching: in March 2026, Ueno issued $350 million in international bonds, with JPMorgan and Bank of America acting as joint bookrunners. The bonds were listed for Luxembourg, and the proceeds were intended for general corporate purposes, including lending and expansion. That does not establish wrongdoing by either American bank, and there is no evidence so far that U.S. officials were involved in the collapse. But American investment banks helped bring hundreds of millions of dollars into this institution, and Paraguayan investigators are now considering requests for evidence from abroad. Could the investigation eventually uncover a wider international financial connection? It’s too early to say. But I would keep watching where the money went, who bought the bonds, which companies received the loans, and what prosecutors find in the U.S. and Luxembourg records.
https://www.ministeriopublico.gov.py/nota/-18945
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