Cuba Libra? Island Nation Slowly Explores Cryptocurrency Options

gepubliceerd op by Coindesk | gepubliceerd op

Cubans are quietly exploring cryptocurrency use-cases on the politically isolated island, even watching Facebook's Libra project with cautious optimism.

"Cuba is probably going to be very interesting for Libra [developers] and I hope there will be some potential there." In its launch materials for the Libra stablecoin, Facebook has focused heavily on the potential to connect the world's underbanked with digital financial services.

Elvis Morales, a Cuban crypto entrepreneur based in Seattle, told CoinDesk he used bitcoin for remittances to family on the island.

Cuban expat Ernesto Alfonso, who used Bitrefill's bitcoin payment options to help friends on the island pay bills, told CoinDesk that internet censorship of crypto apps and services adds an additional layer of complexity to bitcoin apps in Cuba, which often require a VPN for local usage.

"There's no possible way people in Cuba can use Libra unless we enter in the global monetary system," he said.

There is no evidence the Switzerland-based Libra Association could help provide a mainstream crypto on-ramp in Cuba.

Despite widespread Facebook and WhatsApp usage in Cuba among the type of unbanked people the Libra white paper prioritizes, a Facebook spokesperson told CoinDesk there aren't any plans to make the Calibra wallet accessible to Cubans, due to American sanctions.

Trump's tweets aside, bitcoin already offers Cubans global access to censorship-resistant transactions, despite how limited local liquidation options may be.

Neither Libra nor Cuba's future cryptocurrency could offer that.

Alfonso said he doesn't see how Libra would be accessible to Cubans without banking rails and traditional partnerships to assure Libra coins were accepted by companies on the ground.

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