To the empowerment of 72 stores in Cuba for the purchase in dollars of food, cleaning and hardware products They join existing appliances and spare parts, as a grand government plan to raise every penny of freely convertible currency (MLC), primarily dollars, that circulates within the country.
To buy in these establishments, you must have a magnetic card associated with a bank account where money is deposited in MLC or transfers are received from abroad. But what are these cards? Where and how to buy them? Can you buy with a card from abroad? Next, we will try to answer these questions.
Bandec, one of the three banks authorized in Cuba to have dollar accounts. (Photo: Cuban Newspaper)
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Where can new bank accounts be opened on MLC?
The opening of accounts in USD associated with magnetic cards can be carried out at the branches of the Banco Popular de Ahorro, de Crédito y Comercio and del Metropolitano SA
What are the cards that can be used to buy in stores in dollars?
The stores accept all the national magnetic cards of the Metropolitano SA, Credit and Commerce and Popular Savings banks, in addition to the AIS cards generated by Fincimex; as long as they have a bank account associated with MLC.
In the case of international cards, only purchases with VISA and MasterCard, which are not linked to banks in the United States, are allowed. No matter what currency they have, when making the payment the corresponding conversion rate to the US dollar is made.
For example, if you have a Visa card issued by a Mexican bank and want to buy a shampoo for $ 2, the conversion is done at the bank rate, 1 dollar represents 23.11 Mexican pesos.
What are the requirements to open these bank accounts?
To open a bank account with a magnetic card, it is only necessary to be a natural person permanently resident in the national territory with an identity card. The process of delivering the magnetic card with the associated bank account is not resolved in a single day.
What are the fundamental characteristics of these accounts?
The money deposited in these cards it will not be able to be extracted in physical form since its objective is purchases in stores authorized to sell merchandise in USD. In addition, they do not have discounts on purchases and payments of services online as they do RED cards.
Can you deposit money from abroad in those cards?
Yes. The magnetic card can receive remittances from other bank accounts abroad as long as those banks have agreements with Cuban financial entities. With this requirement, all banks in the United States that due to sanctions and prohibitions of the northern government cannot operate with Cuban banks are ruled out.
Another way to deposit money is at the Cuban bank’s own window. For example, if you approach the window of a commercial bank with EUR 100 to deposit on the card in USD, the existing exchange rate at the window EUR / CUC 1.07550 is applied, so the customer is credited to your account in USD 107.55.
In the latter case the money in euros or dollars must have come to you by any other means than Western Union, because this transnational It has agreements with the state-owned Fincimex. SA and remittance money is delivered to the end user in CUC.
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