The Cuban ruler Miguel Díaz-Canel blamed the private sector for the lack of cash in the country's ATMs since the process of banking implementation began in Cuba.
In the program hosted by Díaz-Canel on the Cuban Presidency's YouTube platform, the president mentioned a series of statements allegedly sent by citizens denouncing that many micro, small, and medium enterprises are requesting cash payments instead of also joining the banking process.
"This has to do with the control that state entities have to carry out to eliminate this distortion. We must be more demanding with those who have not fully integrated into the banking process. The population is telling us what needs to be done and where the dissatisfactions are," said Díaz-Canel.
The banking process started a few years ago in Cuba. It was progressing slowly, but the government decided to speed it up in August 2023, despite not having the infrastructure or technological preparedness for it. They did so in a period of high inflation and a severe economic crisis in the country.
The situation caused many people without knowledge of new technologies and without knowing how to make electronic transfers to end up in long lines at ATMs, unable to withdraw their money to make purchases or pay for basic services because the bank did not have cash available.
Juana Lilia Delgado Portal, president minister of the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC), stated that this issue has a solution and emphasized that "there is more money in the country than ever before," although it does not reach the hands of the majority of the population.
"It's not that there is no money in the economy, there is more money than ever, but the flow of that money has been reversed. There is more money leaving the banking system than returning; this disrupts the whole cash flow cycle and then it is difficult to meet cash demands," he admitted.
In his opinion, the cash leaving the banking system is concentrated in a few hands. Therefore, he believes that the State should act so that this cash returns to the banking system through the appropriate channels, but he did not specify what the strategy will be to achieve it.
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