Cuba’s exploding crypto interest comes amid an absence of regulation

[El Presidente]

 

Great illustration 

 

 

 

 

Cuba’s exploding crypto interest comes amid an absence of regulation

November 11, 2020 Crypto News

 

 

Cuba is seeing an influx of cryptocurrency activity amid an apparent absence of related regulation in the country, according to senior executives at local crypto firms.

In early November, Cuba recorded a major spike in Bitcoin (BTC)-related Google queries, indicating an increase in crypto activity in the country. Founders of major local crypto exchanges Qbita and Bitremesas told Cointelegraph that their platforms have seen increased activity in recent months.

Erich Garcia, the creator of Bitremesas, told Cointelegraph that the platform has been steadily growing this year, seeing a notable influx in user activity. “By now, the use of the service is increasing at 200% every month,” Garcia said.

“Bitcoin usage and volume in Cuba is exploding right now,” said Mario Mazzola, founder of Qbita exchange. According to the executive, Qbita’s trading volumes in October were equal to the total volumes of September, August and July combined.

However, the regulatory status of crypto-related activity is not yet defined in Cuba, both executives noted. Amid this regulatory uncertainty, a number of entrepreneurs are moving into crypto, Garcia claimed:

“

now, the cryptocurrency in Cuba is not regulated, the government just doesn’t consider these coins as real money so far. Then, many entrepreneurs are migrating their commerce to this global and more powerful currency.”

Qbita’s Mazzola said that cryptocurrency in Cuba is “totally deregulated,” while at the same time, the local government has endorsed crypto as a means to circumvent sanctions. He said:

“In Cuba, cryptos are totally deregulated. They are neither legal or illegal. […] In fact, on several occasions, representatives of the Cuban government hinted on TV that authorities look at crypto favorably, as they understand that crypto may be a powerful weapon against the U.S. embargo.”

As there is still no concrete legal status for crypto in Cuba, the operation of local crypto exchanges could raise regulatory questions, but Qbita’s founder is confident that local crypto businesses are not in danger because there is also no law explicitly prohibiting them from operating.

“Such P2P transactions are perfectly legal because in Cuba there is no law that forbids people to buy, hold, use and sell Bitcoin to another person,” Mazzola said.

According to Mazzola, local monetary reforms could be one of the major reasons behind rising crypto interest in Cuba. The Cuban government plans to eliminate its dual currency-based economic model, removing the Cuban convertible peso (CUC) and keeping the Cuban peso (CUP). Mazzola said:

“The rise of BTC in Cuba is due to the fact that the government announced recent major monetary reforms, which involve currency unification (CUC goes away, CUP stays) and devaluation of CUP vs. the U.S. dollar. As a result people are using Bitcoin to avoid inflation and the negative impact of devaluation on their savings.”

As previously reported, growing crypto interest in Cuba is also partially a response to the lack of digital financial services in the country. Major companies like PayPal and Stripe do not provide services for Cuban nationals due to sanctions by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC. 

 The limits on Cuba’s access to financial services extend not only to traditional payment firms, but also global crypto companies like Paxful and LocalBitcoins. Jukka Blomberg, chief marketing officer at Finland-based LocalBitcoins, said:

“Cuba is on OFAC sanction list and we have contractual obligations with some of our partners, which means that we cannot operate in Cuba. Not sure if this will change anytime in future, however, unfortunately currently this is the situation.”

[Taco]

I love this. It is freedom.

[Nino]

9 hours ago, El Presidente said:

Erich Garcia, the creator of Bitremesas, told Cointelegraph that the platform has been steadily growing this year, seeing a notable influx in user activity. “By now, the use of the service is increasing at 200% every month,” Garcia said.

This guy Erich Garcia has an excellent YT channel that educates people on BTC currencies and ways to use them for/from Cuba(ns) that I enjoy watching and following called BacheCubano.

Apart from learning about BTC I enjoy keeping up with the Cuban slang ... ?

 

 

[Ryan]

Before Christmas we'll being seeing headlines, "Cuban Govt makes greatest technological leap in 60 years as they find ways to regulate Bitcoin use."

[helix]

didn't work out to well for dumb ass Mcaffee. Ahead of his time lol.

[JohnnyO]

Prez...not sure if all of your info is complete. For years companies in Miami have been laundering money for the government of Cuba (or its agents) with these types of businesses. Eventually, they get caught, have all of their money taken away (and properties) and thrown in the can for a 10-20 year stint. The hosts of those sites are trying to hype its usage in Cuba when the reality is the majority of the people are starving. We have a bad world economy, how do you think they are doing after 8 months of isolation? With a magic wand all the problems are solved with Bitcoin, right? Take a look at Nino's video, I watched all 20 minutes of it. A struggling guy that has to hype the product he is selling, when the reality is that most Cuban's don't have access to what he is talking about. These virtual markets have existed for years. They operate out of Canada, Spain or "Panama". The products are owned by the Cuban Government or one of its agents. The products may not be from Canada or the US, as he implies in the video but most likely cheap junk from China, Viet Nam etc. All of those web sites shut down after a week or so, when they feel the Treasury department is getting too close. They re-appear later under a different name and repeat the cycle. In Miami there are lots of physical virtual stores where you can look at a model of the product (electric scooters, AC, TV, fridge etc)  pay for it and in 6 weeks it will be available for pick up in Cuba. None of the products are brands known in the US and with no UL tags, just junk from China owned by the Cuban government. I might add those products are very pricey, have no replacement parts available and no one is trained in how to service them. I have purchased many times from these virtual stores, sometime it works out, sometimes they just disappear with your money. Just because Bitcoin and the like isn't regulated in Cuba doesn't mean they are not aware of it. In fact the Cuban government is probably the largest user/facilitator of these services. The public only has access to 3G and only government workers have access to 4G which in my best guess you would need that to operate Bitcoin. There is also a crime in Cuba called "enriquecimiento illicito" or illegal enrichment that is as broad as any law can be. Basically it means if you are caught making money on something that is not authorized by the government, they take away all your $$$, properties and you get a stint in the can. Don't want to start WWIII, just pointing out a few things I have seen over the years. Also, think its very commendable on Nino's part to keep providing us with videos in good faith that one day Cuba will be straightened out. John

[Nino]

39 minutes ago, JohnnyO said:

We have a bad world economy, how do you think they are doing after 8 months of isolation?

With a magic wand all the problems are solved with Bitcoin, right?

Take a look at Nino's video, I watched all 20 minutes of it. A struggling guy that has to hype the product he is selling, when the reality is that most Cuban's don't have access to what he is talking about. 

Also, think its very commendable on Nino's part to keep providing us with videos in good faith that one day Cuba will be straightened out. John

@JohnnyO Agree with you.

1) After 8 months of isolation Cuba is doing very badly to use a non-offensive word.

2) BTC will not solve any problem of 99,9% of the Cuban population.

3) Right you are.

4) Wish you were right - I've lost hope many moons ago.

Thanks for all the good details.

[El Presidente]

1 hour ago, JohnnyO said:

Prez...not sure if all of your info is complete. 

 

To be fair John, I just reprinted the article and liked the illustration 

 

I think anyone  who believes crypto will help the average Cuban is deluded. 

However  crypto is being used (still in infancy) by EU companies (mostly French/Spanish) in conjunction with their banks to circumvent OFAC regulations. Most of these are to do with funding or repatriating capital to their business operations in Iran.   It is the roadmap for the Cuban Govt even if only a backup mechanism.

 

[lysagrey]

haha as usual the Cubans are late to the party. I myself have been late to the cryptocurrency party when it comes to bitcoin but I have been doing my research non the less. I understand that things like Bitcoin and Etherium are out of my league these days but investing small amounts of money in promising new cryptocurrencies is not a bad idea at all.
 I haven't been trading for a very long time so I have been browsing the great wide web for information about both trading and cryptocurrency and that was when I came across this really cool website/blog with a lot of cool information about cryptocurrency trading.

[Nino]

The owner of a Cuban crypto currency investment company, Trust Investing, has been arrested for "illicit economic activity" in Havana as he tried to fly to Moscow and is supposed to be held at Villa Marista, the feared MININT prison "where even the deaf & dumb will talk" ..

https://www.14ymedio.com/cuba/Arrestan-Cuba-criptomonedas-Trust-Investing_0_3084291541.html

The director in Cuba of the cryptocurrency firm Trust Investing arrested

The engineer, detained at the airport on April 22, is in Villa Marista for "illicit economic activity," according to his family

Havana | April 28, 2021

Ruslan Concepción, Cuba director of Trust Investing, a controversial cryptocurrency manager designated by some experts as a pyramid scheme platform, was detained at the airport for alleged "illicit economic activity," his family announced on Tuesday.

This 28-year-old industrial engineer, who claimed to earn more than a thousand dollars a day with his investments in the manager, has been in prison since last day 22, two of his brothers denounced on social networks.

Concepción was detained at the airport when he was preparing to travel to Russia to spend a few days with his family. According to his version, the border agents asked Concepción the origin of the money he was carrying, and that he did not exceed the limit of 5,000 dollars without declaring established to leave the country.

When explaining that he came from Trust Investing, the agents considered that it was an illicit source of income, detained him and "spent three days missing, because no one says or where they have him," according to his brother Wilhems Concepción. "The little that has been found out is that they have him in Villa Marista," he added.

Many Trust Investing partners in Cuba, where it has reached a relatively high popularity with thousands of investors, have demanded on social media the release of what they consider their "leader."

In the brief explanation offered on its website, Trust Investing presents itself as a "crypto asset management company in the most daring markets" that has "a high liquidity index" and offers its clients and partners "the opportunity to be an integral part of this innovative market.

" The company claims to have a network of delegates in countries such as Spain, Cuba, Brazil, England, Italy, Mexico or the United States. The National Securities Market Commission of Spain (CNMV) and the Superintendency of the Securities Market of the Republic of Panama (SMV) issued separate statements last year to clarify that Trust Investing lacks a license to operate investments in their respective countries.

According to the fraudulent activity analysis firm Tulip Research, this manager "works like a ponzi scheme, does not have a real product and pays its investors with their incoming money."

In groups dedicated to this platform on social networks, its investors in Cuba deny that it is a pyramid scam and claim to have received all the promised payments and dividends.

 

[ThomasHoward]

LOL. I read the thread and realize how promising cryptocurrency is. I'm also happy that there is new evidence that socialism is unsustainable. It is very interesting that in a country as poor as Cuba, there are as many as 2 cryptocurrency exchanges. Hmm, why don't we try to trade on them? Soon Cubans will raise their economy to the first place in the world by investing in cryptocurrency). I wonder if the bitcoin exchange rate might change because of this? I recently found a website where you can get information about cryptocurrency. Hope, that I helped you out. Good luck!