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The official rates of the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) continue to rise in its so-called Segment III of the exchange market, the mechanism presented by the government as a more flexible or “floating” rate to bring the official value of the Cuban peso closer to real market conditions.
According to the current data for March 7, 2026, the BCC sets the US dollar at 471 CUP and the euro at 544.85 CUP within this segment. However, the informal market continues to show higher values: around 510 CUP per dollar and 575 CUP per euro, according to the daily monitoring by the independent media elTOQUE.
The charts from the Central Bank itself show that these official rates have experienced a gradual increase over the last month. In the case of the dollar, the exchange rate in Segment III started at around 455 CUP at the beginning of February and has risen through several adjustments to reach the current 471 CUP, representing an increase of about 16 pesos in one month.
The euro has exhibited a similar behavior, although with greater volatility. At the beginning of February, it was trading around 538 CUP, experienced several fluctuations throughout the month, and reached levels close to 551 CUP at the end of February, before stabilizing around 544-545 CUP in the early days of March.
These movements suggest that Segment III effectively operates as a semi-floating rate, with periodic adjustments aimed at bringing the official value of the Cuban peso closer to that established in the informal market.
Nonetheless, the gap between both markets persists. Currently, the parallel market dollar exceeds the official rate by about 39 pesos, while the European currency maintains a difference of around 30 pesos.
The persistence of that distance reflects structural problems within the Cuban economy, including the shortage of foreign currencies in the state banking system and the high demand for hard currency from the population.
As long as those conditions do not change, the informal market will continue to serve as the primary reference for the real value of the Cuban peso.
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