Santiago Peña resigns as president of Paraguay amid Ueno Bank crisis

By CP Espanol
Thursday, November 05, 2026

President of Paraguay Santiago Peña and first lady of Paraguay Leticia Ocampos attend the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between USA and Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium on June 12, 2026, in Inglewood, California. | Maya Dehlin Spach/Getty Images

President Santiago Peña of Paraguay resigned from office in a recorded message broadcast on social networks after the crisis unleashed by the intervention of Ueno Bank, a private bank linked to his former business partners.

The decision came after the opposition called for his impeachment and the president of Congress, the ruling party Basilio Núñez, publicly demanded that he leave office. Núñez had warned that, if Peña remained in the Presidency, he would support the process against him.

"I do so with absolute respect for our national constitution and institutional and democratic mechanisms," Peña said in his speech. He also assured that "no position is more important than the stability of the Republic. No person is above Paraguay."

When Peña announced his resignation, the Chamber of Deputies was still debating the accusation of alleged misconduct in the Ueno Bank case. After the announcement, the Lower House voted and approved the accusation unanimously, according to national media. The initiative had been presented by 35 deputies and received the support of the ruling Colorado Party bench.

After the vote, the Senate must decide whether the impeachment proceeds or is null and void. Separately, Congress must decide on the resignation. If he accepts it, Vice President Pedro Alliana would succeed Peña, according to an Associated Press report.

What happened to Ueno Bank and what was your link with Peña?

The Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) opened a resolution procedure against Ueno Bank on November 3, after finding that its solvency ratio had fallen below half of the minimum required.

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"No position is more important than the stability of the Republic. No person is above Paraguay" - Santiago Peña

The review identified problems in asset quality and in the documentation of some operations. The regulator also noted that the bank had provided loans to companies in its own group above the permitted limits.

The intervention left hundreds of thousands of customers without access to their savings and put under scrutiny the public funds that the entity managed, including resources from the Social Security Institute.

Peña had been a shareholder of Ueno Holding and maintained his commercial relationship with the Vázquez Group, linked to the control of the bank, until March 2025, when he was already Chairman. Another point of questioning was the role of Carlos Carvallo, who had led Ueno's predecessor entity before Peña appointed him as head of the Central Bank. After the intervention, Peña asked him to resign and maintained that those responsible should answer to justice.

Why did the opposition in Paraguay call for impeachment?

Opposition legislators called for the impeachment of Santiago Peña and Vice President Pedro Alliana. They questioned the government's actions in the face of the bank's deterioration, the management of public resources placed in the entity and the supervision of the Central Bank. They also expanded a criminal complaint to investigate the decisions of public bodies that maintained deposits and investments in Ueno.

The pressure on Peña increased when sectors of the Colorado Party supported the impeachment and the head of Congress joined the demand for his resignation, according to information from the EFE news agency.

The Chamber of Deputies rejected the request for impeachment against Vice President Alliana, with 48 votes against the accusation and 30 in favor. The decision cleared the way for Alliana to succeed Santiago Peña once Congress officially accepts the resignation.

ASIEP calls for justice and maintains the National Prayer Breakfast

The Association of Evangelical Churches of Paraguay (ASIEP) expressed its solidarity with the savers affected by Ueno Bank's intervention and called for an investigation into those responsible and those who may have covered them up.

The evangelical association valued the bill to facilitate the early return of deposits and demanded that the retirement funds of the Social Security Institute (IPS) and the resources of other public entities be recovered as soon as possible, according to the Chaco Communications Network.

For their part, the organizers confirmed in a statement that the fourth edition of the National Prayer Breakfast will be held this Friday, November 6 at the planned place, Paseo La Galería, in Asunción. They also ratified the presence of evangelist Alberto Mottesi, who is already in Paraguay.

Breakfast will be served from 7 to 8 a.m. and then the official act and prayer time will take place. Evangelical churches said they will pray for the affected families and for the future of the country, as previously reported by Diario Cristiano Internacional.

Peña was scheduled to present during the breakfast a decree related to the National Day of the Evangelical Church. Its official publication is still pending and its final content is still unknown. The organizers' statement did not specify whether the presentation of the decree is still on the agenda.