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NewsWorld News · 9 Nov

Ueno Bank collapse: nearly 1.2 million depositors receive payments as inquiry widens

Paraguay's central bank says nearly 1.2 million Ueno depositors have received payments, while questions remain over savings, pensions and criminal investigations.

Staff Reporter
Illustrative Fish 4 News composite showing Paraguay's flag, a stylised Ueno Bank branch and headline about repayments following the bank's collapse.

Nearly 1.2 million Ueno Bank depositors in Paraguay have received payments worth about $160 million after the digital lender collapsed, but many customers are still waiting for their money as a widening investigation reaches former president Santiago Peña.

The repayments, announced by Paraguay’s central bank on Saturday 7 November, follow days of turmoil in which customers lost access to their savings, pension payments were disrupted and the country’s president was removed from office. The central bank says the crisis is confined to Ueno, rather than the wider banking system.

The bank’s failure and Peña’s initial attempt to resign were covered in Fish 4 News’ earlier report on 5 November. The latest developments raise a more immediate question for depositors: who has been repaid, and who is still waiting?

How much money has been returned?

Pedro Acosta, Paraguay’s acting central bank president, said that payments made on Thursday and Friday had reached approximately 1,196,000 deposit accounts, totalling about 996 billion guaraníes, or roughly US$160 million. The figures were reported at a 7 November news conference and subsequently by Paraguayan newspaper La Nación and Reuters.

That is substantial progress, but it does not mean that 1.2 million customers have recovered every guaraní owed to them. Some payments are advances against the statutory guarantee, with further instalments or reconciliation still required.

Ueno had roughly 2.8 million registered accounts, according to central bank figures reported locally. Some accounts had no balance. Officials said approximately 1.87 million accounts with money in them were eligible for consideration in the repayment process. Registered accounts, affected savers and customers already paid are not interchangeable figures.

Who qualifies for the repayments?

Paraguay’s central bank announced its first payment group on 5 November. It initially covered deposits up to 10 million guaraníes held by customers who had no debts with Ueno and already had an account with another financial institution.

The second group expanded payments for qualifying sight deposits above 10 million guaraníes to an advance ceiling of about 121.76 million guaraníes, equivalent to 40 minimum monthly wages. Funds are transferred to accounts at other Paraguayan banks or finance companies.

The wider legal deposit guarantee is 75 minimum monthly wages, currently 228.3 million guaraníes per depositor per institution, not per individual account. The Senate approved an accelerated advance-payment mechanism on 4 November to help customers access funds sooner.

Customers who also owe the failed bank money may face additional checks and deductions for overdue obligations. The bank and other institutions are arranging receiving accounts for customers who do not already have one elsewhere.

Why are some savers still waiting?

On Sunday 8 November, the central bank clarified that certificates of deposit, known locally as Certificados de Depósito de Ahorro or CDAs, were not included in the first two payment groups. The timetable for later stages was still to be announced, according to La Nación’s account of the regulator’s clarification.

Delays can also occur for customers with credit-card payments, automatic deductions or more complex account records. The central bank has said the amount received may be an initial advance rather than the final amount. Deposits above the guarantee limit depend on what the bank’s resolution process can ultimately recover.

Affected customers can use the central bank’s official deposit guarantee information page to check payment arrangements. They should be cautious about unexpected messages or links purporting to speed up repayments; the regulator has warned about false banking messages.

What about pensions and public money?

The consequences extend beyond personal accounts. International reports say Ueno held approximately $800 million to $850 million of deposits belonging to public institutions, including pension and health bodies. That is an estimate of money deposited before the collapse, not an established figure for irrecoverable losses. How much of those balances can be recovered remains unclear.

Paraguay’s social security institute, the IPS, has been transferring pension recipients away from Ueno. Its president, Derlis León, said on 7 November that the roughly 32,000 pensioners who received payments through Ueno were being moved to eight other banks, and that more than 90,000 IPS pensioners were expected to receive their next payments on 17 November, according to La Nación. That remains a forward-looking assurance rather than confirmation those payments have happened.

For those affected, the immediate disruption includes access to wages, pensions, everyday spending and business cash flow. Faster repayment reduces the pressure but does not erase the losses businesses and households may have suffered during the interruption.

Why did Ueno Bank fail?

The Banco Central del Paraguay opened a formal resolution process following a decision on 2 November. Its statement of 3 November said adjustments to Ueno’s financial statements had pushed the bank’s solvency measure to less than half the regulatory minimum.

Investigators are examining the bank’s lending, accounting and regulatory supervision, including allegations of problematic transactions involving connected businesses. The appointment of Carlos Carvallo, a former Ueno executive who later led the central bank, is also under scrutiny. These are matters for the investigations and the courts, not proof that everyone involved committed a crime.

A resolution procedure is a regulated way of dealing with a failed institution, protecting depositors and recovering value where possible. It does not itself establish the ultimate amount of loss or individual criminal guilt. The regulator has repeatedly described Ueno as a specific case and urged the public not to assume the entire financial system is failing.

Who will lead Paraguay’s central bank?

In a further development on Monday 9 November, President Pedro Alliana nominated economist Jorge Schreiner to become president of the Banco Central del Paraguay. Schreiner previously served on the bank’s board and led Paraguay’s securities regulator. His appointment requires congressional approval; Pedro Acosta remains acting central bank president in the meantime. Alliana said the nomination was intended to strengthen the institution and restore public confidence following the Ueno crisis. The move was reported by Reuters on 9 November and Paraguayan newspaper Última Hora.

What has happened to Santiago Peña?

Paraguay’s Senate confirmed on 6 November that it had removed President Santiago Peña after an impeachment proceeding over alleged poor performance in office. Vice-president Pedro Alliana was sworn in to succeed him.

Prosecutors sought Peña’s detention during the criminal investigation. On Saturday 7 November, Judge Humberto Otazú ordered the former president held in pretrial detention at the Regimiento Escolta Presidencial, a military unit in Asunción, rather than at his home. The order was confirmed by Reuters and EFE. Former central bank chief Carlos Carvallo was also placed in pretrial detention, according to Reuters and Paraguayan court reporting. Peña is accused of alleged breach of trust and administration for personal gain. He denies wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty. The detention order is a precautionary measure pending proceedings, not a conviction.

On 8 November, prosecutors announced a search of a property belonging to Peña in San Bernardino. They said it formed part of their investigation into alleged offences linked to Ueno. A property search or charge is not a criminal conviction. Peña’s political removal and the separate criminal proceedings should not be confused.

How far has the criminal investigation spread?

The Public Prosecutor’s Office said on 6 November that 27 people had been charged in investigations involving alleged misconduct in a banking crisis, breach of trust, attempted fraud and failures concerning commercial records. Prosecutors have searched offices linked to Grupo Vázquez and ITTI, seized documents and electronic equipment, and examined properties connected to suspects.

Investigators also seized two aircraft said to be linked to Ueno and Grupo Vázquez as part of efforts to trace assets and evidence. Authorities have not yet established in court whether individual transactions were unlawful or how much public money may ultimately be lost.

What remains unanswered?

  • How many eligible customers will receive their full balances, and when will later payment groups, including certificate holders, be processed?
  • What proportion of public-sector and pension deposits will be recovered, and who authorised their placement?
  • What did bank regulators know about the lender’s condition, and when did they know it?
  • Which alleged offences, if any, will be proved in court, and what consequences will follow for officials and bank executives?

The central bank’s accelerated payouts are a tangible development, but neither the recovery of depositors’ money nor the criminal and regulatory accountability questions are settled. Fish 4 News will update its coverage as official repayment totals and court proceedings develop.

Update, 9 November 2026: This article has been updated to clarify Santiago Peña’s court-ordered pretrial detention on 7 November and to include President Pedro Alliana’s nomination of a new central bank governor on 9 November. Repayment totals cited above are those reported by the central bank on 7 November.

Sources and further reading