Paraguay’s Senate voted on Friday to remove President Santiago Peña from office over the collapse of the digital lender Ueno Bank. Prosecutors then ordered him placed under house arrest, and Vice President Pedro Alliana was sworn in as the country’s 53rd president the same day.

The vote

44 of Paraguay’s 45 senators voted to remove Peña, Al Jazeera reported in a dispatch written with The Associated Press. The remaining senator abstained — meaning not a single vote was cast against removal. Hiru News reported the same 44-of-45 margin, citing foreign media.

Peña was found guilty of poor performance over his links to Ueno. He acknowledged his departure in a social media post on Friday afternoon: “I take my leave with gratitude, while fully acknowledging the anguish of those who are currently awaiting answers.”

This followed a resignation that Congress refused to accept

Peña had already announced his resignation on Thursday, as LankaNewz reported at the time. Al Jazeera has since updated that account: Congress rejected the resignation and proceeded with impeachment instead, which is why the Senate vote went ahead a day later. The distinction matters — a president who resigns leaves on his own terms, while one removed by impeachment is formally found culpable.

Arrest

After the impeachment, prosecutors ordered Peña placed under house arrest on suspicion of breach of trust and other crimes, according to Al Jazeera. An arrest warrant was also issued for Carlos Carvallo, the former head of Paraguay’s central bank, which has been accused of failing in its oversight duties. Carvallo resigned earlier in the week.

Hiru News reported that Paraguay’s Attorney General has opened three criminal cases against Peña and several former officials in connection with the banking crisis. Al Jazeera does not give a figure for the number of cases; the three-case count rests on Hiru’s reporting alone.

The bank

The crisis erupted early on Tuesday when the central bank announced that Ueno had fallen below legal solvency standards — it did not hold enough collateral to cover its loans and other ventures. The central bank seized the lender and transferred its remaining assets to other banking institutions.

Millions of customers abruptly lost access to their accounts and their pension payments. With roughly three million members, Ueno counted nearly two-thirds of Paraguay’s adults among its customers.

Questions have been raised over whether the bank was properly regulated and whether Peña himself held conflicts of interest involving it.

The new president

Pedro Alliana, 52, a conservative politician, took the oath of office on Friday to become Paraguay’s 53rd president. He had served as Peña’s vice president since the start of the term in 2023. Both men belong to the long-governing Colorado Party.