Cuba is on the verge of recognizing and regulating Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as payment methods. This is described in a resolution issued by the ministry of justice on Thursday. Marta Sabina Wilson González, the central bank’s minister-president, signs the resolution.
According to the paper, which was published in the Official Gazette, the central bank will establish a framework for licensing financial service companies to facilitate bitcoin transactions. Additionally, the central bank may permit Bitcoin transactions “for socioeconomic reasons” while keeping state control over its operations.
Cuban President Miguel Diaz Canel allegedly pondered the usage of cryptocurrencies in May, noting their “convenience” in the country’s economy. The Central American nation has been subjected to a number of US limitations in recent years; President Biden ordered a review of Trump-era rules restricting US-Cuba remittance alternatives in July of this year. Annual remittances to Cuba are estimated to be between $2 and $3 billion.
The global remittance industry has demonstrated a surge in interest in Bitcoin and stablecoins such as USDT, as they offer a significantly cheaper and faster method for overseas workers to send money home to their families when compared to established remittance service providers such as Western Union.
Cuba’s recent decision follows El Salvador’s lead, however, it falls short of recognizing Bitcoin as legal cash. The resolution establishes that “the Cuban peso is the Republic of Cuba’s monetary unit, and that only banknotes and metallic coins issued by the Central Bank of Cuba are legal currency.”
Bitcoin has grown in popularity in Cuba with citizens seeking to diversify their investments away from the country’s depreciating currency; an increasing number of people are already using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to make payments and get their salaries. TradingView data released earlier this year suggested that more than half (50.4 percent) of all inquiries from within Cuba were related to bitcoin.
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