November 13 – The collapse of Paraguay’s biggest digital bank, Ueno, has affected soccer in South America, with doubts over whether $15 million in Conmebol deposits held by the bank will be returned to the confederation.
On Monday, the Central Bank of Paraguay seized control of Ueno, a fast-growing digital lender with close ties to President Santiago Peña, freezing the funds of nearly 3 million customers after finding that its solvency ratio had fallen below the legal minimum.
The closure of the business affected at least 10 members of Paraguay’s men’s national team, which has a $12 million sponsorship from the digital bank. Bank guarantees meant repayments to account holders would cover only $38,000 each.
While Conmebol looks set to lose almost all of its $15 million, the confederation said neither the organization of matches nor prize money for the upcoming Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana tournaments would be affected.
The bank’s collapse raises questions about the role played by the president of CONMEBOL, Alejandro Domínguez, in its business. Domínguez had a close financial relationship with bank director Miguel Vázquez, who is currently under investigation by Paraguayan authorities, and who launched the bank off the back of his family’s Vázquez Group financial services business.
Domínguez received seven payments totaling $3,500,000 from the Vázquez Group on October 28, 2025 to his personal account. The payments were recorded as an “advance of future commissions accrued, arising from the circumstances described in the contract dated October 28, 2025,” according to Paraguayan media ABC.
While Domínguez was being paid, Conmebol’s $14 million deposit in a bank owned by his friend remains trapped, probably lost, along with the savings of a number of Paraguayan players.
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