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The announcement from the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) regarding the new floating exchange rate triggered a flurry of reactions on social media, where humor, confusion, and anger dominated the overall tone. While the government presented the measure as a step to “strengthen the Cuban peso,” comments reveal a mixture of distrust and resignation towards a reform that many interpret as the official recognition of the informal market.
From this December 18, the country operates with three currency exchange segments: one at 1x24 for essential state services, another at 1x120 for entities with external income, and a third "floating" rate for citizens and private management, with an initial rate of 410 pesos per dollar and 481.42 per euro. The figures, almost identical to those reported by the informal market, generated surprise and irony even in official circles.
In the post by the Central Bank of Cuba on Facebook, several users expressed confusion about how the measure will work. “Are there three types of dollars?” asked one of the first commenters, while another questioned: “Does this mean I can go to the bank and buy all the dollars I want at 410?” Others focused on the differences between rates: “Where does the MLC stand now?”, “Why is the euro more expensive than that of the Toque?”, “And what about the Mexican peso?”
Some readers tried to reason through the change, drawing comparisons with foreign experiences: “China and Russia have a similar system, but over there the state allows free production,” wrote an internet user who called for “adapting the Cuban economy to current times.” However, most expressed skepticism: “I don’t understand anything, they say floating rate but no one can buy or sell freely,” noted another comment. On the pages of Cubadebate, messages more in line with the official discourse defended the measure as “a necessary step to organize the market,” although even there doubts prevailed: “If there are no foreign currencies, what is the use of the rate?” asked a reader.
In the post from CiberCuba, the tone was equally harsh. “The Toque under another name, that simple,” wrote a user, referring to the independent outlet that published informal rates for months. Several comments expressed the same idea, with similar criticisms regarding the resemblance between the new state system and the one that the government itself had condemned. Another joked: “Now we have our toque, so no one from outside will come to mess up our economy; we’ll do it ourselves.”
The closeness of values to the informal market fueled collective sarcasm. “Criticizing Toque only to end up the same,” was read in dozens of responses. “This is the same thing with a different logo,” summed up another user, while someone pointed out: “They removed the name, not the rate.” Some took the opportunity to highlight the inequality: “Those exchanging at 1x24 are the upper class; the people, with the floating rate, will continue to go without food or seeing the light.”
Others emphasized the lack of transparency: “Who decides who enters each segment?” asked one internet user, while another added, “The government doesn’t compete with the market, it just mimics it.” There were also messages expressing outright frustration: “A doctor earns 13 dollars a month; with this change, the lowest salary in the history of humanity.”
Among the most shared reactions were those that denounced the contradiction between the official discourse and the economic reality. “They spent a month discrediting the Toque only to end up the same as them,” said one of the most upvoted comments. Another summed it up: “The problem in Cuba is not the rate; it’s the system that controls and punishes anyone who tries to succeed.”
Many of the comments agreed on one point: confusion. Even those who welcomed the announcement did so with reservations. “I hope it works, but if prices don’t drop and there’s no production, the rate doesn’t matter,” noted a participant on Cubadebate. “All this does is make everything more expensive,” added another on the Central Bank’s page.
"Every new measure is an old lie with a different name," wrote one user. "There are no shortages of diagnoses, but there's a surplus of will to change the system," expressed another. The feeling of resignation was mixed with irony: "I have five dollars, I sell them for 24, I buy them for 410, and I become a millionaire... the other way around."
The new three-rate system —1x24, 1x120, and floating— is part of a redesign that the government describes as “gradual and temporary.” However, the Central Bank itself admitted that “it is not what many expected”, and official data shows that the average salary, calculated at 6,685 pesos, amounts to barely 16 dollars a month at the current exchange rate. This Thursday, December 18, on the first day of the new floating rate, the informal market remains unchanged in the selling values of the three reference currencies, with the dollar at 440 CUP and the euro at 480 CUP.
For citizens, the measure does not change everyday reality: cash shortages, endless lines, and unaffordable prices. “If the banks don’t have money to pay salaries, where are they going to get it to exchange for euros?” wondered a user in the official post. Meanwhile, others joked on social media: “Now we really have a floating rate… because everything floats except for salaries.”
The reactions, taken together, reveal a weary country where humor remains a refuge amidst uncertainty. None of the three rates seem capable of restoring the lost confidence in the Cuban peso. Amidst confusion and mockery, a single idea is repeated in the comments: that the Central Bank has effectively become its own "Toque," by formalizing the values of the informal market that it previously criticized.
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