PARAGUAY Law and Practice Contributed by: Juan Fiorio, Alejandra Corrales and Jean Saavedra, Fiorio, Cardozo & Alvarado
1. Legal Framework 1.1 Key Laws and Regulations
the authorisation for the opening of new banks and the opening of branches of foreign banks. First Step Promoters must be appointed to initiate the authorisation process. These promoters, who must be natural persons of recognised compe - tence and economic solvency, will also serve as founding shareholders of the bank. The promoters are responsible for submitting the application to the Superintendency of Banks, which must include: • the name of the entity, legal and actual address, and contact information; • a list and identification of shareholders; • a proposed social charter; • an investment project; • criminal and judicial records of the sharehold - ers; • sworn declarations of shareholders’ assets and income; and • a list of individuals who will hold positions on the board or administrative bodies, judicial and police records of these individuals, along with the CVs and sworn statements of their financial situation. Second Step Once the application is submitted, the Super - intendency of Banks will analyse the documen - tation submitted, including the participation of other areas of the BCP for the relevant study on monetary policy, management, and compe - tence. If any missing or additional documents are required, they will be requested to be submitted within 90 days. Once all documents are submit - ted, the BCP will have 90 days to decide on the application. If the application is complete, it will be published in two widely circulated newspa - pers three times over fifteen days. If there are
In Paraguay, the banking sector is primarily regulated by two laws, Law No 861/96 “General Law of Banks, Financial Entities and other Credit Entities”, and Law No 5787/16 “On the Mod - ernization and Strengthening of the Regulations Governing the Operation of the Paraguayan Financial System.” The entity responsible for the supervision of financial institutions is the Superintendency of Banks, which operates under the Central Bank of Paraguay ( Banco Central del Paraguay , BCP). Furthermore, if the financial institution is a list - ed entity that issues bonds or shares, it will be supervised by the Superintendency of Securi - ties, which also operates under the Central Bank of Paraguay. 2. Authorisation 2.1 Licences and Application Process The authorisation regime in Paraguay is gov - erned by Law No 861/96 and by Resolution No 24, Act 75 dated 11 November 2010, issued by the Board of Directors of the BCP. Law 861/96 establishes that entities conduct - ing financial operations must be formed as limited companies ( sociedad anonima ), with their capital represented by registered shares. These entities must have a minimum paid-in capital of PYG67,830,000,000 for banks and PYG33,915,000,000 for other financial institu - tions. Resolution No 24 establishes three steps for the authorisation process and distinguishes between
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