The Cuban government is looking into recognizing and regulating cryptocurrencies for payments
The Cuban government is reportedly considering recognizing and regulating cryptocurrencies for everyday payments. Reportedly, the Central Bank will set regulations for crypto and define licensing policies for related service providers in this northern Caribbean island nation.
Cuban government recognizes and regulates cryptocurrencies for payments
After El Salvador made history earlier this year by accepting Bitcoin as a legal tender asset, the number of countries planning to imitate the move continues to grow.
A report from Bloomberg shows that Cuba’s Central Bank is planning to enforce rules to allow the country to legally use crypto.
In May of this year, Cuban President Miguel Díaz Canel met with other authorities in the country to consider how to adopt cryptocurrencies to overcome the financial turbulence that has been and is growing before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Miguel Díaz-Canel, President of Cuba
On August 27, several reports also suggested that Cuba is indeed planning to enter the digital asset market. In it, the Cuban government along with the Central Bank are looking to recognize and regulate cryptocurrencies for payments. They will implement the rules and determine the licensing policy for crypto-related service providers to legally operate on the island.
The Cuban economy has already suffered for many years and is subject to additional economic sanctions from the administration of former US President Donald Trump, which crippled the use of the dollar. A senior Cuban ministry official, Johana Tablada, stressed that these measures have cost the country about $20 billion.
“The damage to the bilateral relationship during this time has been considerable, and the economic harm to Cuba immense. We estimate it at about $20 billion”, Talabata commented.
Therefore, the decentralized nature of Bitcoin and some other cryptocurrencies could provide a viable alternative to Cuba. However, the state wants to ensure that these activities are controlled to some extent and only use them for reasons of socio-economic benefit.
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