The Senate approved requests for information from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP), the body responsible for supervising the financial system, about Ueno Bank’s operations. The vote came amid lawmakers’ questions about the institution’s expansion, the concentration of public deposits, and possible political connections.
Twenty-eight requests for information included on the agenda were approved, along with three others submitted during the session. One asks the BCP for data on Ueno’s operations. Senator Celeste Amarilla said she supported the requests because this instrument is an obligation of Congress when there may be a public interest or state resources may be involved. She stressed, however, that a request for information is not equivalent to an accusation.
Senator Rafael Filizzola, of the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP), said the Ueno case has its own characteristics and should not be confused with a generalized suspicion of the banking system. According to figures he presented, the state’s deposits at the institution amount to US$863 million and could be higher when autonomous entities are included.
Filizzola linked the bank’s growth to the period after Santiago Peña’s election and revisited the trajectory that began with the Credicentro lending company. He also questioned corporate ties that, according to his presentation, would involve a company in Luxembourg and Francisco Peña Palacios, the president’s brother. These references were made as political questions and are not accompanied by independent corroboration in the material analyzed.
Another point cited was the move of Carlos Carvallo Spalding, Ueno’s former president, to the presidency of the BCP. Filizzola described the situation as a possible “revolving door” conflict and criticized legislative changes that, in his assessment, reduced restrictions on the transfer of private-sector executives to public oversight positions.
The senator also said that one of the institutions acquired by the group had allegedly been bought “at gunpoint and under threats.” The statement is a serious allegation, and no documents or court decisions supporting it were presented in the available material. He also questioned the accounting of an alleged shortfall of approximately US$300 million, which would have been spread over 20 years, and said this could conceal negative net worth.
The expansion of card operations also entered the debate. Filizzola estimated that Ueno held about 43% of the market and warned of the risk of default associated with the rapid extension of credit to consumers with limited ability to repay.
Amarilla described the dispute as a possible “war” between Banco Basa and Ueno that could reflect the political rivalry between Horacio Cartes, leader of the Honor Colorado movement, and Santiago Peña. The senator also alleged that changes to an emergency bill for the Social Security Institute (IPS) would include a trust potentially favorable to Ueno and questioned an alleged requirement that borrowers open accounts at the institution. These hypotheses still require documentary verification.