After having suddenly increased by five pesos on Tuesday, this Wednesday the average sale of the Freely Convertible Currency (MLC) deflates and decreases by five units to once again stand at 305 CUP in the Cuban informal market.
The dollar and the euro remain stable on May 15th with no variations, at 395 CUP for the US currency and 400 CUP for the European currency, as documented today by elToque in the daily rate that reports on the price fluctuations of currencies in the informal market.
In recent days, the average sale of the three reference currencies in the informal Cuban market seems to have slowed down slightly. The decline of the MLC this Wednesday is added to the slight drop that the euro experienced last weekend.
However, in an article published by elToque at the beginning of the month, the independent media outlet warned that the models of the Observatory of Currencies and Finances of Cuba (OMFi) anticipated that the trend towards the depreciation of the peso could continue in May.
It was forecasted that the informal exchange rate could be around 417-427 CUP per dollar, 422-433 CUP per euro, and 316-324 CUP per MLC by the end of the month. However, it was also suggested that a decrease in the pace of the peso devaluation was likely in the coming months.
Exchange rate today 15/05/2024 - 6:59 a.m. in Cuba:
Exchange rate of the USD to CUP according to ELTOQUE: 395 CUP.
Exchange rate of the euro EUR to CUP according to ELTOQUE: 400 CUP.
Exchange rate of MLC to CUP according to El TOQUE: 305 CUP.
Alternative exchange rate from other platforms:
Dollar exchange rate (USD): Buy 389 CUP, Sell 394 CUP.
Euro exchange rate (EUR): Purchase 398 CUP, Sale 401 CUP.
MLC exchange rate: Buy 304 CUP, Sell 304 CUP.
The unofficial exchange rate for Cuba offered here is not officially recognized or supported by any financial or governmental entity.
Below are the equivalences of each available euro and US dollar bill to Cuban pesos (CUP), according to the exchange rates on May 15th.
US Dollar (USD) to Cuban Peso (CUP):
1 USD equals 395 CUP.
5 USD equals 1,975 CUP.
10 USD equals 3,950 CUP.
20 USD equals 7,900 CUP.
50 USD equals 19,750 CUP.
100 USD is equal to 39,500 CUP.
Euro (EUR) to Cuban Peso (CUP):
1 EUR equals 400 CUP.
5 EUR is equal to 2,000 CUP.
10 EUR equals 4,000 CUP.
20 euros is equal to 8,000 Cuban pesos.
50 EUR is equal to 20,000 CUP.
100 EUR is equal to 40,000 CUP.
This information can be useful to calculate the cost in Cuban pesos of any amount in dollars or euros. These conversions are based on the rates of 395 CUP per dollar and 400 CUP per euro.
What is the future of the MLC?
Regarding the MLC, the virtual monetary creature created by the Cuban government, in mid-April an opinion article published by Diario de Cuba anticipated that the MLC could be on its last legs.
The MLC (freely convertible currency stores) have gone from being a tool to extort emigrants and control the people, to being an instrument to move funds much more efficiently than using pesos, which are scarce in cash and have stricter digital transfer limits -the amount that can be transferred in a day or in a month- than MLC cards, which gives dynamism to private trade in Cuba," warned Rafaela Cruz, the author of the article.
The same source stated that the Government has been left impotent, watching on their computers how MLCs freely jump from one card to another in economic operations that leave them completely out, and, from experience, we know that if there is something that displeases the Castro regime, it is people prospering, especially if they do so on their own.
It should not be long before the MLC disappears, although it is likely to happen gradually, starting by removing the possibility of transferring it between cards - leaving it only as a means of payment for companies that use payment terminals associated with the BCC - thus blocking and eliminating private financial intermediaries," he speculated.
"Of course, that will be a short-term solution -another one-, which will not improve the lives of Cubans in any way," concluded the economic analysis.
