Cuba’s Central Bank Orders Zero Tolerance for Bank Staff Amid Cash Shortage

Cuba’s Central Bank has issued a strict "zero tolerance" policy towards corruption among its bank staff, following a series of arrests in Santiago de Cuba. The Banco Central de Cuba (BCC), responsible for overseeing state banks, emphasized that offenders will be held accountable under the law, although no specific cases were mentioned in the statement.

The issue arose after reports of arrests in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba's second-largest city, where workers from two state banks, BPA and Bandec, were detained for allegedly selling scarce cash to traders and keeping a significant portion for themselves. The unauthorized transactions involved the use of multiple bank cards and identity cards belonging to customers, according to Héroe del Moncada, a pro-government Facebook page linked to the Interior Ministry.

The BCC has ordered all banks to conduct thorough internal investigations, implement stricter controls, and collaborate more closely with anti-corruption bodies. The central bank also vowed to protect whistleblowers who come forward with information about such illicit activities. Cuba has been promoting cashless transactions since August 2023, a policy it calls bancarización, as printing, transporting, and storing physical cash becomes increasingly expensive.

However, despite the push towards digital payments, some shops still refuse bank transfers, and branches and ATMs often run out of cash, creating a need for a black market where people pay fees to convert their bank balance into cash. The arrests come in the wake of a series of similar incidents in 2026, including a case in May where cash machines at Santiago's railway station charged fees of 35 to 50 percent on transactions.

In June, authorities seized 380,000 pesos (around US$510) from an alleged cash reseller who charged a 20% fee. These actions follow a court conviction in late April of three individuals who were jailed for 15, 14, and 10 years for forging bank documents to divert 5.2 million pesos (approximately US$6,950) from a state firm's loan.

The central bank announced the issuance of higher denomination banknotes, such as 10,000-peso and 20,000-peso, to better align with current prices. The bank's decision to crack down on corruption comes amid criticisms that the sector's issues stem from the economic crisis and the US embargo.