Cuban banks stop accepting dollar deposits in cash as of today
HAVANA, Jun 21 (EFE) Cuban banks will not accept dollar deposits in cash as of Monday, a measure that the Cuban government has justified in response to the United States embargo,
which makes it difficult for the island to use that currency in the international banking system.
The decision, which generated a stir among Cubans, comes into force in the midst of the economic crisis in the Caribbean country, with serious problems of shortage of basic products and where the local currency has suffered a strong devaluation in recent months.
The announcement, made on June 10, caused large queues of people in banks to deposit dollars in the following days.
The banks remained open all weekend, including yesterday Sunday.
A note from the Cuban News Agency said today that the US embargo “imposes obstacles on the national banking system for cash deposits of dollars collected in the country” and recalled that the decision is temporary and “does not affect the operations carried out by transfers or cash deposits of other freely convertible currencies accepted in Cuba.
Until the Central Bank of Cuba announced this decision, the value of the dollar on the black market was growing uncontrollably until it reached over 70 Cuban pesos (CUP), almost three times the official price from 1 to 24. As of today, Today, its value in informal operations has dropped to around 52.
Economists familiar with the Cuban economy have been convinced that the dollar will continue to circulate in the informal market.
They consider, however, that the euro will increase in value against the Cuban peso and may become the reference currency in unofficial operations, with an informal exchange at this time of about 85 Cuban pesos per euro against the official rate of 28, 5.
Cuba applied at the beginning of this year a process of monetary and exchange unification that has meant the departure of the convertible peso (CUC) – parity with the dollar – and that left the Cuban peso (CUP) as the only official currency of the country, with a single official conversion rate of 24 pesos per dollar.