The Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) published a declaration of principles on its official website this Monday, in which it expresses its "strongest rejection of any opportunistic, unscrupulous, or illegal behavior that seeks to profit at the expense of others' needs and to affect the image, ethics, and provision of banking services."
The document, signed by Juana Lilia Delgado Portal, the president of the organization, serves as a memorandum mandating compliance for all structures within the Cuban banking system.
What stands out most in the text is what it does not say: the statement does not refer to any specific case, person, institution, or particular fact that would motivate it.
However, the statement comes just four days after employees of the branches of the Banco Popular de Ahorro (BPA) and the Banco de Crédito y Comercio (BANDEC) were detained in Santiago de Cuba for participating in an illegal scheme of cash exchange for electronic transfers, a business through which they charged commissions ranging from 30% to 50%.
The employees acted "by mutual agreement" with self-employed workers, using customer cards and identity documents.
Authorities seized cash, bill counting machines, magnetic cards, and ledgers with transaction records.
However, in its statement, the BCC does not mention that operation or any other.
It also does not link the statement to the 20 modifications to the banking system announced on Monday, which include changes related to the involvement of private and foreign capital, new consumer credits, and the digitization of services.
Zero tolerance, without names or records
The text instructs all banking structures to investigate “thoroughly and without delay” any complaint, clarify administrative, labor, and criminal responsibilities, strengthen audits, protect whistleblowers, and “reaffirm banking ethics and the culture of reporting in all departments.”
"We demand zero tolerance towards attitudes like these. There will be no room for complicity, cover-ups, or impunity," the document states.
The statement also defends the image of the sector: «These behaviors do not characterize Cuban bankers. Our sector is distinguished by honesty, discipline, public service, transparency, and adherence to the law».
"Those who betray these principles do not represent the banking industry and must be held accountable with all the rigor established by the laws," he adds.
The statement concludes with a call to the public and attributes the difficulties in the sector to "the economic crisis and the intensification of the blockade," without mentioning internal corruption as a structural cause.
The final instruction is straightforward: "This memorandum should be disseminated and complied with as mandatory."
A system in structural crisis
The statement comes in the context of documented irregularities throughout 2026.
In April, the Provincial People's Court of Santiago de Cuba sentenced three individuals to prison terms ranging from 10 to 15 years for embezzlement of state funds and forgery of bank documents, in a case involving fraudulent transfers exceeding five million pesos.
The parallel cash transfer exchange market has spread in various areas of the country.
Citizen reports documented in July indicated that to withdraw 2,000 pesos, it was necessary to transfer 2,800, a commission of 40%.
This is further compounded by the rise of digital fraud: the method known as "tarjeteo" and identity theft scams have proliferated amidst the vulnerabilities and challenges of the digital payment system.
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