The announcement comes 48 hours after the outbreak of a banking crisis. The Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) placed Ueno Bank under administration, an institution that claims 2.94 million clients and whose deposits have been temporarily frozen.
The Ueno crisis triggered the anger of small savers. On Tuesday, they besieged the bank's branches in Asunción, the capital.
Parliament, meeting in extraordinary session in the afternoon, was previously supposed to formally accept the resignation of the head of state.
Comfortably elected in 2023, Mr. Peña justifies his departure by the preservation of institutions and social peace, in a climate of tension around the frozen deposits.
Hundreds of people demonstrated again Wednesday evening around Parliament. They demanded the president's resignation shouting"Santi fuera!"(Santi out), leading to clashes with police. Paraguayan President Santiago Peña announced his resignation, saying he was doing so"thinking of the stability of our country, social peace and the need to preserve our democratic institutions.".