A digital revolution is coming to Paraguay’s financial sector. The Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) plans to launch digital versions of one of the country’s most widely held financial instruments by August 2026, a change that experts say could significantly increase trading activity. Paraguay savings certificates, known in Spanish as Certificados de Depósito de Ahorro, or CDAs, are fixed-term instruments issued by banks and finance companies. Investors deposit money for a set period and receive interest in return.
As of the end of April 2026, CDAs held in Paraguayan banks totalled ₲80.3 trillion (approximately US$13.2 billion), representing 44% of all bank savings in the country. Finance companies held an additional ₲3.5 trillion (approximately US$574 million).
From paper to platform
Currently, CDAs are issued as physical certificates. When an investor wishes to sell a CDA before it matures, a transaction conducted on the secondary market, the process involves manual endorsements, administrative steps, and the physical transfer of the document. This cumbersome procedure has historically limited how freely these instruments change hands.
The new digital format, referred to as CDA-d, will replace paper certificates with electronic records held within a technology platform managed by the Securities Depository of the Central Bank of Paraguay (DEPO). Issuances, transfers, custody, and settlement will all take place as account entries within this system.
Officials from the Central Bank’s Financial Operations Division stated that the reform will align Paraguay with international standards promoted by the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and will strengthen the security, transparency, and traceability of transactions.
“The investor stops worrying about how to settle”
César Paredes, president of Cadiem Fund Administrators, drew a direct parallel to an earlier reform. When Paraguay’s bond market moved from physical to electronic trading, transaction volumes rose sharply. He believes digital CDAs will trigger the same effect.
“When the transition was made from paper instruments to electronic operations, transactions increased enormously, because the investor stops worrying about how to settle, whether they have to endorse the certificate or physically move the document,” Paredes said in a recent interview.
Two concrete benefits
He identified two concrete benefits he expects from the change: more frequent transactions and longer investment terms. When sellers know they can exit a position at any time through a functioning secondary market, they become more willing to invest over longer periods.
“When a better secondary market exists, the investor loses their fear of investing for longer terms, because they know they will be able to sell the instrument whenever they want. That is what happened with bonds: before, the maximum terms were three years, and today they reach ten years,” Paredes said.
Bringing hidden trading into view
Secondary market activity in CDAs is already substantial. According to data from Paraguay’s Securities Superintendency, the Paraguay Savings Certificates volume traded in this market reached approximately ₲21.1 trillion (approximately US$3.5 billion) in 2025. However, a significant portion of that activity takes place privately, between banks, mutual funds, and institutional investors, rather than through brokerage firms, meaning official statistics have historically captured only part of the picture.
The digital platform will change that. Each change of ownership and each transfer will be recorded automatically, giving the Central Bank access to detailed data on volumes, participants, and market movements. Regulators will gain a far more complete view of the secondary market than is currently possible.
Simultaneous settlement, reduced risk
The system will also introduce a settlement mechanism known as Delivery versus Payment (DvP), under which the transfer of securities and the transfer of funds occur simultaneously. This eliminates the risk that one party completes their side of a transaction while the other does not, a concern in any market where settlement is not instant.
A gradual transition for Paraguay Savings Certificates
Physical CDAs will not disappear immediately. The two formats will coexist for at least two years after the digital platform launches, allowing time to stabilise the system and add new operational features. Only then is a full migration expected.
The reform forms part of a broader drive to modernise Paraguay’s financial infrastructure. The country’s stock exchange, the Asunción Stock Exchange, adopted a Nasdaq-powered trading platform in January 2026, a step that also aimed to reduce friction and attract greater participation from local and international investors.
