Cuban regime inspectors conducted an operation on Monday at the Aguilera Cultural Plaza, a central commercial space in Santiago de Cuba popularly known as "the Subway," where several self-employed workers were penalized for not having electronic payment transfers activated.
The operation was reported by independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, who shared images of inspectors touring the area, taking notes, and conversing with vendors.
Fines, according to the report from the communicator, start at 16,000 Cuban pesos, a significant amount for small merchants who also report a fundamental contradiction: the State forces them to collect payments digitally while many of their suppliers demand cash or foreign currency to sell them the goods they need to restock.
In the Aguilera Cultural Plaza, numerous stalls operate under tents and simple structures, selling clothing, footwear, home goods, and other products.
"How can we force them to receive money via transfer when a large part of the goods they need to restock must be purchased with cash or foreign currency?" questioned Mayeta Labrada while reporting on the sanctions.
The question summarizes one of the main problems that small businesses face due to the government's push for banking: receiving money in an account does not guarantee that they will have the necessary cash to keep the business running.
Fines while obtaining cash becomes an odyssey
The monitoring in Santiago de Cuba is not an isolated incident. This August, the authorities have intensified operations against private businesses for failures related to pricing, documentation, and electronic payment methods.
On the 14th, a day of inspections in Centro Habana concluded with 232 businesses inspected, 363 fines, 15 closures, and 11 forced sales.
In Sancti Spíritus, between August 4 and 15, the authorities imposed over 200 fines and ordered at least five closures.
The offensive against establishments that fail to comply with banking regulations has been ongoing for several years. Official data released in 2025 by the newspaper Granma reported 15,240 fines and 269 closures of establishments due to irregularities detected during inspections.
There lies one of the greatest contradictions of the official offensive. While the government demands that merchants accept transfers and other electronic means, withdrawing money from banks has become an increasingly complicated task for Cubans.
In June, it was reported in Havana about the limitation of ATM withdrawals to caps between 3,000 and 5,000 pesos per transaction, in a context where more than half of the dispensers in the capital remained out of service.
The situation has reached such a point that the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) announced extraordinary measures to address the cash shortage, including the introduction of 2,000 and 5,000 pesos notes and the temporary removal of certain limits on cash payments.
However, those decisions have not resolved a liquidity crisis that continues to affect both consumers and merchants.
"They must have good sponsors."
The reports about the operation in Santiago de Cuba also raised another common complaint: the apparent inequality in the application of regulations.
Social media users claimed that at least two small and medium-sized enterprises located in the Aguilera area would also not accept transfers, but they had not been sanctioned during the inspection. "They must have good connections," commented one user.
Others pointed out that authorities should demand the same conditions from wholesale suppliers, as many of them do not accept electronic payments either.
For self-employed individuals, the problem creates a challenging cycle that is hard to break: the state requires them to charge via bank transfers, but their suppliers need cash; banks, in turn, do not always have the cash available to provide to them.
A user highlighted the contradiction in the very sanctions imposed by the inspectors.
"Can those who have been fined already go pay their fines via transfer? Because that's another one of the paradoxes of this situation," he remarked ironically.
The banking program was launched by the Cuban government in August 2023 with the , expanding electronic payments, and increasing control over economic flows.
Three years later, the authorities continue attempting to expand it through inspections, fines, and closures of establishments, while basic problems persist that hinder its application in daily life.
The lack of cash, out-of-service ATMs, restrictions on withdrawing money, and a supply market where numerous suppliers require physical payments particularly place small traders in a difficult situation.
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