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The announcement of the new state system to manage, control, and allocate foreign currency within Cuba sparked an immediate wave of disbelief, annoyance, and ridicule among the population.
The measure, which legalizes internal transactions in dollars and paves the way for a partial dollarization of the country, was presented by the government as a "transitory" mechanism to organize the economy; however, for many Cubans, it represents another abrupt shift in a model that for years has operated amidst improvisations, restrictions, and distrust towards the very State that manages the bank accounts.
As soon as the Decree-Law 113/2025 and its supplementary resolutions were published, social media was flooded with a mix of sarcasm, skepticism, and warnings.
On Facebook, a user summed up the general sentiment with a phrase that went viral: “Anyone who opens an account in dollars should say goodbye to their money”, recalling what happened with the former CUC and with the CUP funds that many Cubans today cannot fully withdraw from banks.
Other comments ranged from mockery to fear. "If I pay with a $100 bill and the purchase is $23.75, what currency would they give me in change?", one reader quipped. While another responded that, in light of this new experiment, "hiding it under the mattress is less risky" than in state banks.
Amidst bitter humor and indignation, many recalled what they consider a historical pattern: allowing the dollar, penalizing it, needing it again, reintroducing it, and then, when the state coffers are full, prohibiting it once more.
"They put it, they take it away, they put it back... and so on", wrote one user, while another warned: "When the bank's coffers are filled, they will prohibit circulation again."
The distrust towards the banking system was one of the most recurring themes. "Anyone who thinks of opening a dollar account in the bank must be missing a screw,” commented a reader, recalling that even the CUP cannot be withdrawn freely according to the needs of the population.
The suspicion that the government is seeking to identify and eventually seize the dollars that enter the system was recurrent: “That’s so the money comes in and then they can implement measures again to keep it or confiscate it… like they always do”, wrote another user.
Among the most critical reactions, there was a questioning of the official double standard: "And in Cuba, they pay in dollars... what gall. They do everything for their own convenience, and where does that leave the people?"; while other readers pointed out the contradiction between the anti-imperialist rhetoric and the explicit dependency on greenbacks: "The money of the empire... how they love it."
In Cubadebate, a platform aligned with the official discourse, questions quickly arose as well. "Are they going to sell the dollar legally? Which dollar are they going to control? No one can decide about money they do not have," questioned a reader, pointing to the absence of a real currency market. Others, more skeptical, warned that as long as improvisation persists, "the more they implement, the more disorder they create."
There were also those who recalled past times to highlight the deterioration: "When I was a child, a dollar and a Cuban peso had the same value", wrote a woman. Another, even older, added: "With the Cuban peso, you could go to the United States. There, you can imagine how productive the country was".
Between frustration and dark humor, the backdrop is the same: a weary population facing economic decisions that seem to recycle without addressing the essentials. "Nothing they do will work if they don't produce, if there are no factories, if there's no electricity, if there's no infrastructure. They can authorize payments in bottle caps, and the country will remain the same,” reflected a user.
Others were more direct: “Any benefits for the people?”, asked a reader. The question remained unanswered.
For many Cubans, the new system is nothing more than the institutionalization of an inequality that already exists, with a fragmented economy where only those who have access to dollars can minimally engage with the real market, while the rest remain trapped in an increasingly devalued CUP.
The authorities insist that this is a temporary measure aimed at "protecting national interests." However, for Cubans both on the island and abroad, the prevailing feeling is that they are witnessing the beginning of a new chapter in Cuba's long economic saga, where the rules change but the precariousness remains.
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