Cuba lifts bank cash deposits in US dollars ban

Cuban banks are going back to accept cash deposits in U.S. dollars, as the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) has lifted a two-year ban on Monday.

The Cuban government imposed the ban in 2021 amidst continuing difficulties caused by the ongoing U.S. embargo, and came during the country’s worst economic crisis.

The lifting of the ban comes in light of the recent increase in tourism and the gradual recovery of the service industry and the productive sector, despite that, the U.S. economic pressure remains the same, the BCC mentioned.

Cuba has been under U.S. sanctions for over six decades, but the Trump Administration had further tightened the economic restrictions on the country. The BCC struggled to find international banks willing to receive dollars in cash from Cuba.

Current U.S. President Joe Biden, along with Cuban and U.S. officials have been holding meetings to discuss the Cuban immigrant crisis.