Cuba has become the first country to authorize cryptocurrency for corporate cross-border payments, as U.S. sanctions block access to the SWIFT system and contribute to a chronic dollar shortage. The move seeks to formalize crypto as a regulated payment instrument and to facilitate international trade amid tightened financial constraints. Under the new framework, ten firms have been licensed to use cryptocurrency for cross-border payments.
Licenses were granted to companies including software developers Inhennius and Dopleyni, the La Calesa Real restaurant, the La Mecnika transport firm, and the Prosa sanitary-ware producer. Transactions must be conducted only through a central bank-approved virtual asset service provider, and each deal must align with the business purpose stated in the company’s charter. Regulators have also implemented layered safeguards to prevent crypto from being used for asset leakage or illicit remittance.
Cuba Debate, a local media outlet, said the move could spur international trade and private-sector innovation in a harsher financial climate. The policy requires detailed reporting on volumes and types of cryptocurrency used.
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