Paraguay President Santiago Peña has resigned, days after the collapse of Paraguay’s central bank seized Ueno Bank. Peña announced his resignation in a video posted to X, saying he was stepping down to preserve the country’s stability and democratic institutions.

The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates for the first time in over three years in order to tackle the inflation shock caused by the Iran war. Inflation is predicted to rise further over the coming months. So economists reckon the nine policymakers on the Monetary Policy Committee have little option but to increase the bank’s key rate to 4% from 3.75%. The increase anticipated Thursday would be the first since August 2023. The pressure on rate-setters has grown steadily over recent months. But the rise in inflation to an 11-month high of 3.5% in September cemented market expectations of a rate hike this month.

Paraguay’s central bank has seized a major digital bank with ties to President Santiago Peña. The takeover Tuesday came after regulators found Ueno’s financial cushion against losses had fallen far below the legal minimum. The bank says it has about 3 million customers and manages up to $850 million in public money including pension funds. Authorities say a guarantee fund will protect smaller deposits. But larger balances remain uncertain. The intervention deepens a scandal over the president’s business connections and the bank’s loans to companies linked to its owners. Peña and the bank deny wrongdoing.