Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds in downtown Asunción as the insolvency of Ueno Bank triggered wide-scale unrest across Paraguay’s capital. Amid the protests, opposition lawmakers have formally advanced efforts to impeach President Santiago Peña, alleging that his former business ties to the lender’s parent group created a conflict of interest that contributed to the regulatory failure.
The central bank’s Nov 3 seizure of the digital lender, which held nearly $3B in deposits, left roughly 3 million customers — about 60% of the adult population — unable to access their accounts. The instability has spurred a more than 5% spike in demand for the cryptocurrency stablecoin USDT and followed warning signs including an Oct 16 downgrade by Fitch and a surge in the bank’s Eurobond yields to 11% just before its collapse. While authorities have detained eight bank executives for suspected breach of trust, depositors currently remain limited to an initial recovery of up to $1,700.
