Short on Dollars, Cadeca Will Now Process Tax Collection and Retiree Payments

14ymedio, Havana, 14 June 2021 — Residents of Havana’s Nuevo Vedado neighborhood had been wondering why Cadeca, the state-run currency exchange agency, would be opening a new office in their area. They got their answer this weekend: the company will now be processing taxes and payments to retirees. “All of us were surprised they would … Continue reading “Short on Dollars, Cadeca Will Now Process Tax Collection and Retiree Payments”

Cadeca to Issue Pre-Paid Cards in Another Step Towards Dollarization in Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 1 June 2021 —  Cuba’s state-run currency exchange company, Cadeca, has announced “a new service”: prepaid cards in dollars to be used exclusively within Cuba to pay for goods and services in the country’s hard-currency retail network. The new operation, which is not yet available, is an effort to take over cash remittance transfers … Continue reading “Cadeca to Issue Pre-Paid Cards in Another Step Towards Dollarization in Cuba”

As the Dollar Approaches 300 Pesos, the Cuban Government Talks About ‘Intervening’ in the Informal Market

14ymedio, Madrid, 30 January 2024 — Economic reforms are coming together for the Cuban Government, which is expected to announce changes in the foreign exchange market this February. In the first Council of Ministers session held this year, the Minister of Economy, Alejandro Gil, set an immediate date on a priority issue for the country, … Continue reading “As the Dollar Approaches 300 Pesos, the Cuban Government Talks About ‘Intervening’ in the Informal Market”

A Cuban Bank Offers New Prepaid Cards in Dollars for Cubans and Foreigners

14ymedio, Havana, 23 January 2024 — A group of “selected branches” of the Banco de Crédito y Comercio de Cuba (Bandec) will begin selling prepaid cards in dollars for domestic and foreign customers starting this Wednesday. Similar to those already marketed in hotels, the new cards offer advantages over their predecessors: they are valid for … Continue reading “A Cuban Bank Offers New Prepaid Cards in Dollars for Cubans and Foreigners”

Paying with Hard Currency Cards, A Scam for Tourists in Cuba

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 4 January 2024 — Twinkling lights, sculptural bodies and music. The propaganda about the Tropicana cabaret in Havana has barely changed in decades. The environment has changed and customers looking for a night of relaxation will have to overcome some obstacles, including the method of payment: a convoluted and frustrating … Continue reading “Paying with Hard Currency Cards, A Scam for Tourists in Cuba”

In Cuba, Tourists Distrust Prepaid Hard Currency Cards and Prefer to Pay in Cash

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 8 November 2023 — With seven years in the United States and a butcher’s trade, Yoandy returned to Cuba this October to spend a few days with his family. In addition to their embrace, this 46-year-old from Villa Clara encountered serious problems when it came to paying for products and … Continue reading “In Cuba, Tourists Distrust Prepaid Hard Currency Cards and Prefer to Pay in Cash”

Cuban Authorities Blame the Failure of Banking Reform on Hard Currency Sellers

14ymedio, Havana, 27 October 2023 —  After turning a blind eye for decades to street currency sellers, the authorities have decided that this activity “hinders” the bancarización* [banking reform] decreed by the Government last August. On Friday, the official press reported a police raid in Sancti Spíritus against an “illegal cadeca” (exchange house run by individuals). Those … Continue reading “Cuban Authorities Blame the Failure of Banking Reform on Hard Currency Sellers”

Cuban Government Taps Experts in an Effort to Halt Peso’s Downward Plunge

14ymedio, Madrid, September 12, 2023 — Faced with the peso’s seemingly unstoppable free fall, the Cuban government is mobilizing its own economists by soliciting proposals from them. One such proposal, submitted by Joel Ernesto Marill Domenech, was published this week in Cubadebate. In a series of two articles, the official from the Ministry of Economy … Continue reading “Cuban Government Taps Experts in an Effort to Halt Peso’s Downward Plunge”

Cuba: If Gas Stations Eliminate Payment in Cash, What Will Happen Next?

14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 3 September 2023 — With the Cuban economy suffering the acute effects of stagflation (economic stagnation and inflation), from which the authorities are unable to extract themselves, the demand to give continuity to the banking reform being referred to as bancarización* and the elimination of cash in payments for different … Continue reading “Cuba: If Gas Stations Eliminate Payment in Cash, What Will Happen Next?”

Tens of Thousands of Cubans on Waiting List to Buy Dollars

14ymedio, Havana, 28 August 2023 — Cuba’s official currency exchange, Cadeca, indicated on Sunday that, after being out of commission for three days, the Ticket app will again be taking online reservations for people wanting to buy hard currency at its authorized branches. The waiting list at just one Havana location already exceeds 12,000 people. … Continue reading “Tens of Thousands of Cubans on Waiting List to Buy Dollars”

The Regime Brings Out the Heavy Artillery Against El Toque

14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 29 August 2023 — It was just what was missing. Faced with the bewilderment caused by a fall in the value of the Cuban peso with respect to all currencies, which pushes the economy into an abyss, the regime takes out of the hat in the state press a theory … Continue reading “The Regime Brings Out the Heavy Artillery Against El Toque”

Black Market Alternatives and a Nationwide Cash Shortage Force Cuba’s Currency Exchange Bureaus to Close

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodriguez, Havana, August 24, 2023 — A few years ago, its windows displayed the exchange rates of various foreign currencies. Those signs have since been replaced with drawings of children’s faces welcoming customers to what had been the Cadeca currency exchange bureau on the corner of Obispo and Compostela streets in Old … Continue reading “Black Market Alternatives and a Nationwide Cash Shortage Force Cuba’s Currency Exchange Bureaus to Close”

Cuba’s Central Bank Prohibits Private Businesses from Withdrawing Cash from ATMs

14ymedio, Havana, August 2, 2023 — The “bankification” of the country, just approved this Monday by the Council of Ministers, reflects the lack of liquidity of the Cuban State, and will begin to take effect as of this Thursday, “gradually,” with the announcement of a group of measures by the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC). … Continue reading “Cuba’s Central Bank Prohibits Private Businesses from Withdrawing Cash from ATMs”

One of Its Inventors Describes the Cuban App ‘Ticket’ As ‘The Monster I Helped Create’

  14ymedio, Mercedes García, Havana, 11 May 2023 – The App ’Ticket’, launched in Cuba in December 2022 to facilitate the electronic processing of appointments in both public institutions and private businesses, increasingly displeases customers and even one of its creators, Jesús Daniel Saura Díaz. A few days ago, the latter expressed one of the … Continue reading “One of Its Inventors Describes the Cuban App ‘Ticket’ As ‘The Monster I Helped Create’”

Cuba Seeks To Extend Prepaid Cards in Hard Currency for Tourism

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 22 April 2023  — Cuba wants to extend to tourists who visit the Island the use of prepaid cards in Freely Convertible Currency (MLC), a Cuban virtual currency based on foreign currencies, directors of the official Casas de Cambio (Cadeca) reported this Friday. Those cards began to be marketed in 2021 … Continue reading “Cuba Seeks To Extend Prepaid Cards in Hard Currency for Tourism”