The informal market in Cuba opens with the dollar on the rise: The euro is also increasing

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By CiberCuba Editorial Team

Saturday, October 31, 2026 - 12:03

Cuban money, reference imagePhoto © Cubadebate

At 10:00 a.m., local Cuban time, opens this Saturday, October 31, 2026, with increasing pressure on the Cuban peso.

The US dollar starts off strong and the euro follows suit, while the MLC experiences a significant drop, although its value should be taken with caution due to the low volume of trades available during this time frame.

The U.S. dollar is trading at 883 Cuban pesos (CUP) in the informal market, which represents an increase of 11.5 pesos compared to the previous day, when it was at 871 CUP.

The upward trend is also evident in the weekly and monthly outlook: a week ago, the greenback was exchanged for 833 pesos, marking an increase of 50 pesos over the last week, equivalent to 6%.

In the last month, the dollar has risen 120 pesos from the 763 CUP recorded 30 days ago, an increase of 15.7%. However, it is worth noting that this 30-day comparison may partly reflect adjustments in the methodology of the index. Over the past 30 days, the dollar has reached a high of 883 CUP —the current value— and a low of 763 CUP. It continues to set the tone for the informal market in a context of structural currency scarcity.

Exchange Rate Evolution

The euro is around 963 Cuban pesos (CUP), a value that should be taken as indicative given the low volume of transactions recorded during this time period. This represents an increase of 13 pesos compared to the previous session, when it was quoted at 950 CUP.

In the last week, the European currency has risen by 43 pesos from 920 CUP seven days ago, an increase of 4.7%. Over the past month, it has accumulated a gain of 96 pesos from 867 CUP thirty days ago, which is 11.1% more, following the same methodological caution applied to the monthly comparison.

The maximum over the last 30 days is 967 CUP and the minimum is 860 CUP. It exceeds the dollar by 80 pesos, consolidating its dominant position in the parallel market.

The MLC registers an indicative value of 549 Cuban pesos (CUP) this Saturday, as the available data in this range is scarce. This represents a drop of 83.5 pesos compared to the previous day, when it was at 632 CUP, a variation of -13.2% that should be interpreted cautiously due to the limited sample of operations.

In the last week, it has declined by 47.5 pesos from the 596 CUP it was a week ago. Over the past 30 days, the MLC has fluctuated between a high of 742 CUP and a low of 457 CUP.

Without a physical existence, its use is limited to state-run businesses that accept it, which restricts its circulation compared to cash currencies.

Exchange rate of the dollar USD to CUP: 883 CUP.
Exchange rate from euro EUR to CUP: 963 CUP.
Exchange rate from MLC to CUP: 549 CUP.

The official exchange rate of the Central Bank of Cuba (Segment III) is 768 CUP per dollar and 857 CUP per euro, which remains significantly below the values that prevail in everyday transactions in the informal currency market.

Although Segment III was introduced as a more flexible exchange mechanism, its official rate remains far off from that of the informal market and fails to meet the actual foreign currency demand of the population. The gap between the official and informal rates for the dollar exceeds 115 pesos, while for the euro it is close to 106 pesos.

In a context of sustained inflation, low state salaries, and increasing partial dollarization of the economy, every fluctuation in the informal market directly affects internal prices and the purchasing power of Cubans.

The simultaneous rise of the dollar and the euro this Saturday deepens the pressure on Cuban households that rely on remittances or need foreign currency to cover everyday needs.

The Exchange Rate of CiberCuba is an index of the informal Cuban market developed from the automated analysis of thousands of currency buying and selling postings in Telegram and Facebook groups.

The calculation disregards atypical offers and spam messages, weighs each transaction according to its age, and consolidates a representative value that is updated several times a day.