Paraguay's ousted president placed under house arrest after banking crisis

Paraguay's rightwing president Santiago Peña was placed under house arrest minutes after Congress impeached him, following a banking crisis that left 60% of the country's adult population unable to access their accounts. He faces investigation over allegations of illicit enrichment, money laundering, and influence peddling. The crisis began when Ueno bank was suspended this week after irregularities, freezing accounts of 2.9 million people and sparking nationwide protests with violent clashes. Peña allegedly favoured the bank, which expanded rapidly under his government, and his arrest warrant also includes former Ueno CEO Carlos Carvallo Spalding, whom Peña appointed central bank head. Peña, a key US ally, held about $1m in Ueno shares until April 2025, and state and pension funds invested an estimated $800m to $860m in the bank. His vice-president Pedro Alliana was sworn in as new leader, while opposition senators called it one of the biggest corruption scandals since democracy's return.