Ueno raised $350M in international bonds months before Paraguay seized it
What's the deal? Paraguay's uenoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → bank raised $350 million through an international bond issuance in March 2026 — months before the country's central bank intervened and froze the lender's obligations. JPMorgan and Bank of America led the sale, which carried a 6.70% coupon and matures in 2031.
By the numbers: The deal was the largest international bond issuance ever by a Paraguayan bank and drew demand worth one and a half times the amount offered. The unsecured notes ranked in the 64th percentile by size among comparable rounds.
What does ueno do? Launched in 2021, ueno is a digital lender that grew quickly into a mid-sized bank, with roughly 3 million customers in a country of 6.5 million. It held about $850 million in public funds, including money from state institutions and pension bodies.
Where the money went: Proceeds were earmarked mainly for expanding corporate lending to Paraguayan companies and diversifying the bank's funding sources. The raise followed $171 million in new credit facilities from development finance institutions and a growing stake from Hungary's OTP BankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, which invested $47 million in parent company U HoldingsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
What went wrong? On November 2, the Central Bank of Paraguay found ueno's solvency had fallen below half the legal minimum and ordered a resolution process. The regulator had already been investigating loans to companies linked to controlling shareholder Grupo VázquezDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. Bond payments were suspended, and millions of customers were temporarily locked out of their accounts.
Why it matters locally: The collapse triggered a political crisis. President Santiago Peña, who held a stake in Grupo Vázquez until March 2025, resigned on November 5 as opposition lawmakers moved to impeach him. Ueno attempted a last-minute $100 million capital injection four days before the intervention.
The signal: A record bond sale, backing from a major European bank, and favourable ratings did not shield ueno from a rapid solvency collapse. Authorities said they found no broader weakness in Paraguay's banking system — but the case is a sharp reminder of how quickly credit risk can turn confidence into crisis.
Read more: veja.abril.com.br
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
