Under the leadership of Pedro Isaías Barquet, La Filantrópica promoted the development of small industry, commerce, and agriculture, and became established as a strong and solvent financial institution.

At the time of Isaías Barquet's death in 1960, the family decided to save the bank and inject it with capital.

The government, however, focused all its blame for the crisis on the Isaias brothers and Filanbanco, which had close political ties to the opposition party.

[2] Due to changes made to regulations, Filanbanco was converted into a "central bank" after the government took over ownership.

As such, Filanbanco had to absorb all other failing banks and that was the main reason for its closure in 2001, over three years under ownership and management by the Ecuadorian government.

In June 2000, the Ecuadorian Attorney General Falconi Puig charged the Isaias brothers with "bank embezzlement."

For example, the manager of the Central Bank of Ecuador told the Attorney General that there had been no misuse of funds while Filanbanco was under control of the Isaias Group, and charges were filed anyway.

[3] The issue was quiet for several years until 2007, when Rafael Correa began as president of Ecuador after winning as a left-wing economist.

Even before the investigation began, Correa repeatedly used the term “corrupt bankers” when referring to Filanbanco’s owners, the Isaias’.