The Central Bank of Cuba announced that deposits in US dollars are again allowed after the decision to suspend them in 2021 due to the blockade imposed by the United States.

"Financial and banking institutions will accept cash deposits in US dollars in bank accounts," said a decision issued by the Central Bank of Cuba, published Monday in the Official Gazette.

This new decision cancels a decision issued by the Central Bank of Cuba, which in June 2021 suspended cash deposits in dollars due to the difficulties associated with the ongoing US blockade.

The decision, which came as a surprise, stated that the new monetary policy responds to the current priorities in the island, namely the economy and tourism, two sectors that have suffered greatly from the Covid-19 pandemic and have begun their gradual recovery.

The Central Bank of Cuba attributed its decision to these favorable economic conditions, noting the continuation of measures to "prevent cash deposits in US dollars abroad".

Cuban economist Omar Everlini Perez said the authorities are trying to reverse mistakes they made, stressing that "dollars are still circulating on the black market."

The Central Bank of Cuba, for its part, pointed out that "the core of the problem has not been solved."

The island has been under a US blockade since 1962, which makes dollar exchanges difficult. This blockade was tightened under former US President Donald Trump, with more than 240 additional measures that current President Joe Biden has not returned.

The monetary reform adopted by the Cuban government in January 2021 in the midst of the pandemic led to a decline in the Cuban peso from 24 to 120 against the US dollar, according to the official exchange rate, with a huge increase in the black market, where the price is 185 pesos against one dollar.

This was accompanied by runaway inflation that reached 70% in 2021 and 39% in 2022.