Banks in Cuba are again accepting cash deposits in US dollars after a ban was surprisingly lifted on Monday (10).
Cubans had been unable to deposit dollars in cash into their accounts at banks and other financial institutions for almost two years.
The Cuban regime imposed the ban in 2021, citing “continuing difficulties due to the ongoing US embargo.”
The move comes amid the worst economic crisis Cuba has experienced in decades.
Cubans face food, medicine, and gasoline shortages, leading to long lines outside stores and gas stations.
Cuba has been under US sanctions for more than six decades, but economic restrictions have been further tightened under the Trump administration.
Under the sanctions, it became increasingly difficult for Cuba’s central bank to find international banks willing to accept dollars in cash from the communist-run island.
The Cuban Central Bank’s (BCC) decision was published Monday in the Cuban Official Gazette and took effect immediately.
The institution does not mention Cuba’s current economic problems but cites the recent increase in tourism and the “gradual recovery of the services and productive sectors” to lift the ban.
The resolution also states that the “economic pressure” from the United States that led to the ban continues, and therefore “the root of the problem” has not been resolved.