The Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) has disclosed essential details about the banking process that it intends to carry out on the Island to control the finances of all the “economic actors” on the Island. To do this, it prepared a list of questions and frequent answers that also address the Zero Cash campaign, which seeks to prohibit the payment of services such as electricity and fuel bills with cash.
Banking in Cuba is intended to carry out all commercial and financial transactions using payment instruments and electronic channels, to end the movement of cash in the face of high inflation.
What are the non-cash payment instruments?
According to the BCC, to advance this purpose with the “Zero Cash” campaign, it is recommended to use checks, bills of exchange, promissory notes, payment cards, transfers, collection orders, and local letters of credit.
What are electronic payment channels?
In this sense, the banking institution recalls that there are payment channels that depend on technology such as point-of-sale terminals (POS), Transfermóvil and Enzona payment gateways, as well as remote banking. The objective is to enhance these tools and avoid their malfunction as sometimes happens.
What can people who are not banked or have mobile phones do?
The BCC is not concerned about people who are not banked or do not have mobile phones to have the aforementioned applications. According to the official explanation, banking access is a “gradual, gradual process, in correspondence with the economic and technological conditions that are created in each locality.”
The government institution affirms that “cash will continue to be used, the actions are aimed at minimizing the use where the conditions are created.” However, it warns those who do not have smartphones, but do have magnetic cards that “they can use the payment card where they receive salary or retirement to carry out operations where the Point of Sale Terminal service exists.”
Does the limit of 5,000 CUP for payments and collections in cash affect the population?
According to the interpretation that BCC officials make of article 4 of Resolution 111/2023 on the maximum limit of 5,000 Cuban pesos (CUP) for cash payments and collections, it does not affect the population, since it only applies to operations between economic actors. It is not for natural persons.
Resolution 111/2023 establishes the following subjects as economic actors:
- state companies
- higher organizations of Business Management (OSDE)
- budgeted units; non-agricultural cooperatives
- agricultural cooperatives
- micro, small, medium-sized enterprises (MIPYMES)
- foreign investment modalities
- the associative forms created under the Law of Associations;
- local development projects (LDPs)
- agricultural producers
- individual farmers
- commercial fishermen
- self-employed workers (TCP);
- artists and creators
