Cuba doesn\u2019t see large volumes of bitcoin transactions, yet the country has become one of the clearest examples of cryptocurrency use under sanctions and limited access to international payment systems. Against this backdrop, part of the flow is shifting to P2P networks and messengers, forming elements of a postbank economy.<\/p>\n
ForkLog examined how an island of more than 10 million people lives under financial isolation and why authorities began legalizing crypto for foreign trade.<\/p>\n
On the evening of March 4, much of western Cuba lost power<\/a>. First, one of the country\u2019s key thermal power plants, Antonio Guiteras, about 100 km from Havana, shut down in an emergency. Minutes later the outages cascaded across the grid. Restoration took 16 hours<\/a>.<\/p>\n Representatives of the Ministry of Energy linked<\/a> the shutdown to the U.S. oil blockade of Cuba.<\/p>\n Soon after the arrest of Venezuela\u2019s president<\/a>, Nicol\u00e1s Maduro, on January 3 during a military operation, Donald Trump\u2019s administration declared<\/a> Cuba an \u201cextraordinary and unusual threat\u201d<\/span> to U.S. national security. <\/p>\n Washington tightened sanctions on Venezuela\u2019s oil industry and threatened tariffs on countries supplying fuel to Cuba. That reduced regional shipments, including exports from Mexico<\/a>.<\/p>\n Cuba needs about 110,000 barrels of fuel a day, but domestic production doesn\u2019t exceed 40,000 barrels. The country has also completely run out<\/a> of diesel and fuel oil. Add to this the physical wear of generation assets with no access to spare parts to keep them running.<\/p>\n In the following weeks the grid collapsed again, leading to a full shutdown<\/a> of the national power system. By May, outages had become routine, reaching 18\u201324 hours a day<\/a> in some regions. <\/p>\n By late May<\/a>, available capacity stood at 1,175 MW against demand of 2,713 MW.<\/p>\n Beyond social fallout like water supply disruptions and broken cold chains, the blackouts also hit financial infrastructure. Banking depends critically on stable power and connectivity: ATMs, payment terminals and parts of digital services fail.<\/p>\n This stop-start mode further shifted attention to informal channels and cryptocurrencies. Digital assets had entered Cuban daily life long before the grid\u2019s collapse, primarily due to chronic economic constraints and the gradual breakdown of traditional payment rails.<\/p>\n A key pillar of Cuba\u2019s economy is the conglomerate GAESA<\/span><\/a>, created in 1995 by Ra\u00fal Castro<\/span> and run by the country\u2019s armed forces. Initially meant to bolster defense finances, it later became a commercial empire. <\/p>\n Experts estimate GAESA controls 40% to 70% of the economy and 95% of the financial system, including Banco Financiero Internacional, one of the largest banks. Its operations span hotels, retail, port infrastructure, currency exchange and a large share of import channels. Some estimates attribute about 34%<\/a> of Cuba\u2019s total goods and services exports to the conglomerate. <\/p>\n An investigation by the NY Times<\/a> emphasizes that GAESA functions as a closed corporate structure with limited public reporting and minimal external transparency, while its activities are effectively state-controlled.<\/p>\n The U.S. government contends<\/a> the network\u2019s revenues exceed the state budget more than threefold and that it may control up to $20 billion in illicit assets.<\/p>\n Cuba\u2019s embassy in the United Kingdom disputed the figures, saying reporters mixed up currencies and overstated the amount by 24 times. According to the embassy, under basic local accounting rules the figures in the document required conversion into pesos at the official rate (1:24), which the authors failed to apply.<\/p>\n The @MiamiHerald<\/a> & @ngameztorres<\/a> claim Cuba\u2019s GAESA hoards $18B USD, pushing a sensationalist narrative to justify brutal US sanctions. Basic accounting dismantles this “bombshell.” Let’s look at their own leaked document. This is a masterclass in journalistic malpractice. \ud83e\uddf5 https:\/\/t.co\/UIhXozD4Iw<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/NInRidHEFA<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Cuba in the UK (@EmbaCuba_UK) May 16, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Financial Architecture<\/strong><\/h2>\n
The Military Conglomerate<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n