Menu
“For us, the focal point of everything is technology-based innovation,” assures Mr. Miguel Vázquez Villasanti, CEO and Founder of ueno bank and President of Grupo Vázquez SAE. As one of the youngest and most progressive entrepreneurs in the country, Mr. Vázquez certainly knows what he is talking about. Taking over his family credit company and profiting from its 45-year trajectory, in 2021 he transformed it into ueno Finance Company, and subsequently, with the approval of the Central Bank of Paraguay, which granted the necessary license due to ueno’s proven track record, it transitioned into ueno bank, the country’s first digital bank. Since then, ueno Bank has established itself as a total game-changer in the country’s financial ecosystem with its emphasis on financial inclusion and disruptive 24/7 digital physical services: digital experience terminals (TEDs), Ueno dual card vending machines available to customers 24/7, nature-inspired spaces where customers can carry out all their transactions; video call terminals (ROT) for face-to-face contact with expert assistants; their payments and collections network (Wepa), whose 24-hour cash deposits have encouraged customers to use the platform and become less reliant on cash; working spaces with a cafeteria, access to Ueno products and the best technology available to work and network; and their web banking and app, which allows access to an instant savings account, with no average balance or transaction fees, or even pre-approved loans with direct credit to the account. Another key innovation was making football ticketing available through their channels, which significantly boosted the integration of new customers into their system. Currently, almost all the stadiums in Paraguay are Ueno stadiums, and thanks to this they started getting up to 3,000 new customers a day. “As a result, we are now the number one bank in terms of number of clients, with 1,460,000 unique customers,” states Mr. Vázquez proudly.
It all started when they realized that Paraguayan banks and finance companies were being very productive by focusing solely on a few clients, mostly large companies, but were leaving aside the banking of individuals and SMEs. “We started to break this vicious circle by giving people the opportunity to access banking services that they normally could not or did not even imagine they could reach,” recalls Mr. Vázquez, pointing out that 30% of customers are accessing the financial system for the first time. Due to his family experience in credit, they already knew that most people taking loans outside of the banking system pay them back responsibly, and with the addition of AI they easily collected data that allowed them to know their prospective clients better and thus guarantee both their own credit safety and its accordance with strict banking regulations.
“One of ueno’s main missions is to expand access to financing in Paraguay, but in order to provide credit we need to know the client first. So we focus a lot on encouraging the customer to enter our platform, and with four easy steps in less than four minutes in our super-automated onboarding, we now have the best database that currently exists in the market,” says Mr. Vázquez. Moreover, Ueno’s strategy is built with sustainability at its core, and since its conception they have consciously developed environmentally-friendly products and spaces, like their “sustainable bank card boxes,” made of compostable packaging and containing native seed paper to be planted; the use of wood sourced 100% from reforested trees in all of their experience centers; or their Zero Paper project, which seeks to eliminate or reduce the use of paper to what is strictly necessary.
This year, ueno bank aims to strengthen its brand through a merger with Vision Bank, expanding its 24/7 digital branches to over 70 and introducing new products like Ueno Seguros (insurance) and Ueno Casa de Bolsa (brokerage). They will also focus on financial education with Ueno Kids and launch the country’s first piggy-bank coin deposit machines. Ueno will continue supporting the Paraguayan diaspora through a partnership with Western Union. These initiatives aim to reach 3 million customers and achieve their goal of having 90% of Paraguayans bankarized, positioning Paraguay as a global banking benchmark.
insightful stories, and exclusive content. Our curated newsletter is designed for the globally-minded individual, offering a unique blend of cultural insights, industry news, and behind-the-scenes looks at the stories that connect us all.
