
{"id":287153,"date":"2023-08-18T19:36:19","date_gmt":"2023-08-18T23:36:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/?p=287153"},"modified":"2023-08-18T19:36:19","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T23:36:19","slug":"bankarization-in-cuba-whats-heard-in-the-street","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/cuba\/economy\/cuban-economy\/bankarization-in-cuba-whats-heard-in-the-street\/","title":{"rendered":"Bankarization in Cuba: what\u2019s heard in the street"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More than a week has passed since the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) announced <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/cuba\/cuba-cajeros-automaticos-solo-daran-dinero-en-efectivo-a-personas-naturales\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a group of actions<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to promote <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/tag\/cuban-economy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">bankarization<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and the use of electronic channels on the island. As well as the publication of the controversial <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gacetaoficial.gob.cu\/sites\/default\/files\/goc-2023-ex55.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Resolution 111\/2023<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that, among other novelties, sets the maximum limit for cash operations of all economic actors, both state and private, at 5,000 CUP.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The new measures, established in the midst of skyrocketing inflation and a deep economic crisis in which the Cuban currency depreciates daily against the dollar and other currencies, have left no one indifferent. It has provoked endless opinions and questions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the BCC and the Cuban government defend the (\u201cgradual\u201d) implementation of bankarization as a necessary step and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/cuba\/gobierno-cubano-insiste-en-que-la-bancarizacion-beneficiara-a-la-mayoria\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">assure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that it will benefit \u201cthe majority of the population,\u201d economists, academics and businesspeople have warned of the negative effects of the measures on the Cuban economic framework.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reduction in the supply of goods, greater depreciation of the Cuban peso, more informality in the monetary sector, contraction in the activity of the new economic actors and effects on state enterprises linked to the private sector, are some of the foreseeable consequences warned by them.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It would be necessary to add the impact that the above would have on Cubans, who since long before the new measures have been dealing with precariousness and uncertainty in the midst of the chronic crisis that the island is dragging. Crisis accentuated by the pandemic, U.S. sanctions, the war in Ukraine, and the failure of previous policies implemented by the government, which have had a direct impact on their pockets.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is not surprising that, in line with what has been pointed out by experts or with their own reasons, many on the Cuban streets do not hide their concern and distrust of the recently announced package. And even without fully understanding the content and scope of the measures in their daily lives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHonestly, I don\u2019t understand much about the matter,\u201d confesses Ana Mar\u00eda, a retiree who I meet in line at an ATM in Old Havana. \u201cEnough with the fact that I learned to cash the checkbook around here. Even though in the end it\u2019s not enough\u2026.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For her, as for others who are waiting for their turn at the ATM, \u201celectronic money sounds very nice; but leave me with the cash, with the hard cash. A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush\u2026,\u201d she affirms.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_287156\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-287156\" style=\"width: 1140px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-287156\" src=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1140\" height=\"815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-1024x732.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-120x86.jpg 120w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-350x250.jpg 350w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-1-1-750x536.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1140px) 100vw, 1140px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-287156\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">People queue to access an ATM in Havana. Photo: Otmaro Rodr\u00edguez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rolando, a 53-year-old mechanic, agrees; although without ignoring \u201cthe advantages\u201d of electronic payments. \u201cI have been paying for electricity and other services by Transferm\u00f3vil for some time, and it is true that it is easier. But there are many other things that cannot be paid for out there, the same for avocados to a street vendor or a stretch on an almendr\u00f3n. That, without talking about the black market, which is what many people use.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cRight now,\u201d he notes, \u201cafter the measures were announced, there are sellers who used to accept transfers and now are no longer doing so. It happened to me with one from whom I bought chicken and hash under the counter, and with a bread vendor. People want to have cash, so how am I going to charge my clients?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Other repeated concerns on the streets are related to technology. Although the authorities have highlighted that in Cuba there are more than 7.6 million active mobile lines, of which some 6.7 access the Internet, while an electronic payment gateway such as Transferm\u00f3vil already has more than 4 million users, a not inconsiderable sector of society today does not have mobile devices or real connectivity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many are elderly people with low incomes, in a country where the low birth rate and constant emigration keep <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/tag\/population-aging\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">population aging<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on the rise while pushing down the number of working-age Cubans.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cMy grandmother doesn\u2019t have a cell phone and she doesn\u2019t understand Transferm\u00f3vil or anything like that. I help her with some payments through my cell phone, but there are many older people who have no one. If now they begin to eliminate cash payments, <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.tribuna.cu\/capitalinas\/2023-07-25\/nota-informativa-de-la-empresa-electrica-de-la-habana?page=15\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">as it was said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> they were going to do in some places with the electricity bill, or if the problems continue to withdraw money from ATMs and banks, what are these people going to do?\u201d reflects Alejandro.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_287157\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-287157\" style=\"width: 1140px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-287157\" src=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1140\" height=\"815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-1024x732.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-120x86.jpg 120w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-350x250.jpg 350w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Banco-Galiano-1-750x536.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1140px) 100vw, 1140px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-287157\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">People queue to enter a bank and to access an ATM in Havana. Photo: Otmaro Rodr\u00edguez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The 25-year-old young man, a medical graduate, points to another collective concern: the daily technical and connectivity difficulties.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHow are they going to want to do that in Cuba, when any old thing makes the connection not work and you can\u2019t make a payment, or you do it and then it does not appear registered and they want to charge you again, or applications such as the one to buy tickets freeze in the middle of the process?\u201d he says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOr that the POS in the stores have no connection and you have to leave without being able to buy or wait for nobody knows how long, as it happened to me. And furthermore, they are stores in freely convertible currency,\u201d Mariana, his girlfriend, who studies at the university, supports him. \u201cAs long as those things are not fixed, they should not take a step like this, I think.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_287158\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-287158\" style=\"width: 1140px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-287158\" src=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1140\" height=\"815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-1024x732.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-120x86.jpg 120w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-350x250.jpg 350w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Cajeros-2-1-750x536.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1140px) 100vw, 1140px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-287158\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">People queue to access an ATM in Havana. Photo: Otmaro Rodr\u00edguez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The morning progresses and many Havana banks show a similar picture: numerous people waiting to be able to enter to carry out the procedures and operations they want or need to carry out. Queues are also the usual scene at ATMs, where they do work.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although days have passed since the new provisions for bankarization came into force, the outlook does not seem to be very different from what existed before the announcement. At least not yet. The president of the Central Bank himself <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cubadebate.cu\/noticias\/2023\/08\/07\/despejando-dudas-sobre-las-nuevas-medidas-de-bancarizacion-en-cuba-video\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">acknowledged<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that, based on what was reported, an increase in operations in branches was expected; but he assured that organizational measures would be taken to organize banking work.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this sense, in a symptomatic decision, some banks began to work on Sundays to \u201cfacilitate\u201d the availability of cash to their customers. The start of a training program for workers in the sector, the population and different economic actors were also <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.acn.cu\/cuba\/111974-en-marcha-capacitacion-sobre-bancarizacion-de-transacciones-fotos\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reported<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, to \u201cachieve general awareness about bankarization\u201d and clarify doubts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In addition, the president of the BCC confirmed that the limit of 5,000 pesos per operation, established in Resolution 111\/2023, \u201cdoes not apply to individuals\u201d; but he clarified that \u201cyou have to see the capacities of each branch.\u201d And those capacities, in not a few places, are diminished by the cash deficit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The deficit, undoubtedly a catalyst for the new measures, had already been generating \u2014 along with endless queues \u2014 growing discontent and criticism among the population. And still continues to generate them. In the banks, some Havanans tell me, they only allow you to withdraw up to 2,000 pesos, if they have money. Or one customer must wait for another to make a deposit before they can withdraw that same cash. And in the ATMs there are often only low denomination bills.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAt the moment, I don\u2019t see any change. I even think there are more queues at the banks. And at ATMs things are more or less the same,\u201d says Camilo, a 37-year-old computer scientist. \u201cI know that a short time has passed since they announced the bankarization, but I don\u2019t have much hope of improvement,\u201d he adds skeptically.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBanks in this country have been working poorly for some time, like so many other things. And, until now, the government has not hit the nail on the head with any new measure. If anything, it\u2019s been for the worse,\u201d he reasons. \u201cLook at what happened with the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/tag\/task-of-reorganization\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reorganization<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which rather came to disorganize things even more. Or with measures to boost agriculture. Why is it going to be different this time?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDo you know about Murphy\u2019s Law, journalist?\u201d Javier asks me, introducing himself as a musician, artisan and cultural promoter. \u201cWell, the government seems not to,\u201d he answers himself. \u201cIf something can go wrong, it will go wrong,\u201d he recites it from memory. \u201cAnd it seems to me that this measure can backfire again.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI sincerely hope I\u2019m wrong, but just reading what various economists have said, with clarity and arguments, the matter does not look good,\u201d explains the young man. \u201cWhat I don\u2019t understand is how those who take these measures don\u2019t realize these things; how they don\u2019t anticipate the consequences before deciding something like that, and, furthermore, they hope that nobody criticizes them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Along with concerns and questions, caution and expectation are perceived in the streets. Not a few prefer not to talk about the subject \u201cjust in case\u201d or argue that they still don\u2019t understand enough to give an opinion. Others bet on giving \u201ca margin\u201d to bankarization and granting the government an umpteenth vote of confidence, at least for the moment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou have to give it some time to see if things are rearranging themselves,\u201d considers Ofelia, 48, a lawyer by profession. \u201cPerhaps this was not the best time to do something like this, due to the crisis and other situations that should have been seen first; but the reality is that there are serious problems with cash and the government had to do something. Now you have to give it a margin of time,\u201d she insists.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_287160\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-287160\" style=\"width: 1140px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-287160\" src=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1140\" height=\"815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-1024x732.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-120x86.jpg 120w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-350x250.jpg 350w, https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Pago-qr_otm_1-1-750x536.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1140px) 100vw, 1140px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-287160\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A person pays through a QR code, in a state store in Havana. Photo: Otmaro Rodr\u00edguez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For his part, Felipe, retired from the Ministry of Industry, confirms that he also prefers to collect and pay in cash, but that \u201cyou have to understand that times change. Cuba has to adapt to how things are today in the world, and do what we can with the little we have, because the country is not going to stop either, is it?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat happens,\u201d he points out, \u201cis that there are people complaining because there is going to be greater bank control over cash and many things are going to have to be done electronically. But, if an enterprise or an individual cannot, or does not want to operate under these conditions, it has to be called to chapter. Maybe he\u2019s been doing something he shouldn\u2019t and now he\u2019s going to have to go straight.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Camilo, on the other hand, is less optimistic: \u201cThey can try to control whatever they want, but the one with the money will not let go and the most affected, once again, will be the people. I don\u2019t know how they don\u2019t realize that. There are already people charging for giving cash in exchange for transfers and also inventing a thousand other complications. And look at where the exchange rates for the dollar and the euro are, which have already broken Sotomayor\u2019s record.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cFor me, it\u2019s convenient that the dollar rises, because that way I get more money from what my family sends me,\u201d says Dunia, a 45-year-old laboratory technician. \u201cBut, on the other hand, if the prices of everything else also go up, it\u2019s not like I\u2019m going to gain much either. As things are, money disappears like a magic trick and let\u2019s not talk about wages. What is clear to me is that, just in case, I want the dollars that they pay me in cash.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThose who buy and sell currencies will continue to do so, and move cash out of banks. And the dollar and the euro are going to continue to go up because they are needed to buy outside of Cuba and what the government sells is nothing more than a trickle,\u201d reflects Javier, who regrets that the authorities have not said \u201cnot even a word.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAnd prices must go up,\u201d he concludes, \u201cbecause if SMEs can\u2019t buy a lot of dollars, neither legally nor illegally, they won\u2019t be able to import much either. That is elementary. Unless the government goes crazy and starts selling them wholesale dollars; but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to happen, because it doesn\u2019t have that kind of money for that. If it had enough dollars, we wouldn\u2019t be where we are. But it seems that there are no Cuban pesos anymore&#8230;\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In tune with experts or with their own reasons, many Cubans do not hide their concern and distrust with the recently announced measures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3261,"featured_media":287155,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13904],"tags":[14816,34635],"ppma_author":[33550],"class_list":["post-287153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cuban-economy","tag-cuban-economy","tag-population-aging"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Bankarization in Cuba: what\u2019s heard in the street | OnCubaNews English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In tune with 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