A range of government policies aimed at pushing Cubans towards cashless payments are ‘alarming’ for entrepreneurs and have encouraged some businesses to go cash-only for fear of losing access to the physical money vital to their operations.
We recently reported on the damaging effects of the new policies on Cuban citizens’ privacy, choice and financial control , and a new Reuters report focuses specifically on small businesses already struggling with the fallout. It notes the ‘most alarming’ measure is a 5,000 peso ($200) daily cap on cash withdrawals for businesses.
Reuters spoke to Yulieta Hernandez, the founder and manager of Pilares Construction, and she explained that while she has already adopted electronic banking, she often needs rapid access to cash to respond to emergencies arising on job sites. She added that many of her suppliers have stopped accepting cashless payments entirely—the opposite of what the new policies sought to achieve.
