Paraguay's Senate removes President Peña 44-0 and puts him under house arrest after Ueno Bank collapse

Paraguay's Senate voted 44-0 on Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, to remove President Santiago Peña for misconduct in office, and he was ordered held at home in Asunción, according to the Associated Press and UPI. The removal came three days after regulators seized Ueno Bank, a digital lender that had signed up most of the country's adults.

What collapsed

On Tuesday, Nov. 3, Paraguay's central bank (BCP) put Ueno into resolution after its solvency ratio fell below half the legal minimum, AP reported in its first story. Customers could not withdraw or transfer money. AP says the bank claimed about 3 million customers. By Friday AP described nearly half of Paraguay's roughly 6 million people as locked out of savings and said Ueno had signed up more than two-thirds of the country's adults.

UPI puts the figure at about 2.9 million customers, or about 60% of adults. These are estimates from different outlets, not an audited count. We could not retrieve a BCP release with its own tally, so treat the saver count as approximate.

The public money

This was not only a retail failure. AP reports more than $800 million in public money sat at Ueno. Lawmakers accuse Peña of allowing a $355 million deposit from the state pension fund beyond legal limits (the Nov. 3 AP story put the pension fund's holdings near $380 million in bonds and term deposits, so the figures differ by how they are counted). Another $21 million in Inter-American Development Bank and Taiwan loans meant for public works is trapped. AP also reports a ride-hailing app that relied on Ueno shut down, leaving 3,000 drivers without work.

The impeachment path

The Chamber of Deputies' own release dated Nov. 5 says deputies approved the impeachment with 78 votes in an extraordinary session. The charges it lists include conflict of interest over Peña's role in Ueno Holding, appointing former Ueno finance company head Carlos Carvallo to run the central bank, pushing changes to the conflict-of-interest law, and letting social security institute (IPS) funds concentrate at Ueno above legal limits. The Senate then acted as judge. Per AP, the charges are breach of trust, influence peddling and using public office for personal gain; the most serious carry up to 10 years in prison. Peña denies wrongdoing. UPI quotes his lawyer calling the allegations "irresponsible and opportunistic."

One wrinkle: the Chamber release and UPI say Peña offered to resign on Thursday. UPI reports lawmakers rejected it. UPI adds that removal rather than resignation costs him the lifetime Senate seat and protections former presidents receive. That consequence is single-sourced to UPI, as we found no second outlet confirming it.

Who is in charge now

AP reports Vice President Pedro Alliana was sworn in Friday to serve out the term, which ends in August 2028. AP also notes Alliana is under investigation in connection with the bank. The Chamber release says a second session was called on an impeachment request against Alliana, and that Peña's Colorado Party backed the case against Peña but not against Alliana. We found no result of that second request.

What happens next

• Saturday, Nov. 7: per AP, Peña must remain at one of his homes until he appears before prosecutors that morning.
• Carvallo: prosecutors ordered the arrest of the former central bank chief; AP said it was unclear whether he had been taken into custody.
• Ueno executives: AP says 27 people are charged, including founder and former CEO Miguel Vázquez, with six former directors in pretrial detention.
• Depositors: AP says repayments began Thursday, starting with balances up to 10 million guaraníes (about $1,500). Deposit insurance covers up to roughly $35,000 per AP, which the central bank says fully covers 97% of customers. UPI cites a coverage cap of about $37,000 and a larger initial payment of about $18,700; the two outlets disagree, and we have not verified either against the guarantee fund. The Nov. 3 AP story said the planned first payout was about $1,700 with no date set.

What it means for businesses

For Paraguayan merchants, payroll and suppliers who banked at Ueno, the practical issue is access: cash held outside the insured limit, and funds in transit, are the exposure. For foreign lenders and multilateral partners, the trapped $21 million shows how public project money can sit inside a private lender. We do not know how long repayment will take, and nobody should read the headline numbers as a timeline.

Sources: Associated Press (via WRAL, Nov. 6, and News4Jax, Nov. 3); UPI, Nov. 6; Paraguay Chamber of Deputies, Nov. 5. Facts attributed above are as reported; some figures conflict between outlets and the BCP's own statement could not be retrieved. This is news information, not investment advice.