Venceremos laments the loss in value of the MLC (Freely Convertible Currency) and its replacement by the “empire’s” currency.
14ymedio, Havana, 10 August 2025 — The official newspaper Venceremos, organ of the Communist Party in Guantánamo, has described the phenomenon of dollarization with an unusually critical tone. The text emphasizes the gradual disappearance of shops in freely convertible currency (MLC), as well as the prominence of bank cards, especially the Classic, which allows paying in dollars without standing in line or coming up agasint problems. Some interpret this change as the prelude to a major transformation.
What the official newspaper calls a “virus” has spread to the rest of the country from Havana. The emblematic 3rd and 70th market in the capital began to accept green banknotes, and almost immediately the MLC stores began to show more shortages than usual, while relatively well-stocked outlets operating only in physical dollars and with new cards emerged.
The informal exchange market, always sensitive to signals, reacted quickly. The gap between virtual “convertible currency” and physical currency widened, becoming a chasm. On the street, a cash dollar is worth much more than a digital dollar in MLC.
The ‘Venceremos’ report comes a little late for a problem that the independent media have already examined in minute detail many times.
The Venceremos report comes a little late for a problem that the independent media have already examined in minute detail many times. First, there are discounts on non-perishable products; then, a temporary “closed for maintenance” sign and some cosmetic touches; finally, the reopening as a dollar store. Inside, the sellers confirm what the official channels have not said: the merchandise is liquidated, and when the inventory runs out, the store reopens trading exclusively in US banknotes.
For those who still have savings in MLC or receive payments in that virtual currency, the situation is discouraging. The supply is limited to items of low demand that many buy hastily in order not to lose everything. The feeling of helplessness is growing, and with it the perception that the MLC is doomed to disappear.
On the street, the issue is one of the most discussed topics. It is commented on in lines, public transport and social networks. At the official level, however, silence prevails. The Venceremos article criticizes, without naming, those responsible for the communication policy, pointing out that people do not receive clear and timely explanations about processes that directly affect them.
The only recent official reaction came from the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC), which denied a rumor about the imminent disappearance of this virtual currency. Speculation had circulated after a maintenance of the country’s main payment platform. In a short statement, the entity stated that operations in MLC continued and that interruptions were part of routine technical work, and it called for reporting through official channels.
The denial did not dispel the concern. As Venceremos points out, it is difficult to blame the population for believing in rumors when there is a lack of accurate and timely information. In addition, the episode highlighted a missed opportunity to face reality. In three decades, the Cuban regime has created and eliminated the CUC, allowed and banned the physical dollar, introduced and restricted virtual currencies, and is now converting the currency of the “empire” into the only valid national currency on the Island, while condemning the MLC to irrelevance, all in the midst of a sustained devaluation of the Cuban peso and an unstoppable rise in the dollar, which this Sunday is approaching 400 pesos.
A monetary “solution” is introduced, presented as stable; its use is limited, devalued and eventually replaced by another.
The historical account made by the Guantanamo media itself, unusual in a Party organ, presents a repetitive cycle. A monetary “solution” is introduced, presented as stable; its use is limited, devalued and finally replaced by another. The MLC, which was born as a digital equivalent of the dollar and with the promise of stability, is now being replaced by direct transactions in physical currency.
In Guantánamo, as on the rest of the Island, each new store closure is interpreted as another step towards total dollarization. Consumers prepare, exchange MLC for dollars in the informal market at very unfavorable rates and prioritize spending their virtual balances before they lose value. The general expectation is that, sooner rather than later, the MLC will be history.
The Venceremos article does not pronounce against this possible transition, but its tone and structure say everything. The use of expressions such as “extreme unction” and “life support” to refer to virtual currency breaks with the usual triumphalist rhetoric and suggests that, in the provincial official press, some journalists are tired of making up fictitious advances like everyone else, which also explode in their faces. .
Translated by Regina Anavy
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