Cuban entrepreneur Erich García Cruz, founder and executive director of the QvaPay platform, has publicly commented on the decision of the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC) to authorize ten companies to use cryptocurrencies for international payments.
“We started badly. To use crypto, no one has to authorize me,” wrote in your X account this Tuesday, March 24, shortly after the measure became known.
Although he criticized the need for an official license, he added: “But hey… there is QvaPay, you are welcome.” In another message, García Cruz recalled his pioneering career: “Guess who five years ago was teaching about Bitcoin as a free model to receive and make payments worldwide without anyone’s permission.”
He pointed out that at that time received criticism instead of support, and expressed hope that “all of Cuba learns to use cryptocurrencies and understands that they do not have to ask anyone for permission.”
He wished “luck to everyone” and predicted “freedom, prosperity and success.” When responding to a user who questioned the need for state authorization, García Cruz was more direct: “Of course not. It’s like authorizing yourself to breathe.”
BCC Resolution 4/2026, published on March 23, 2026 in the Extraordinary Official Gazette No. 46, grants specific licenses to ten entities for the first time —nine micro, small and medium-sized companies (MSMEs) and a mixed company— to use virtual assets, exclusively in international payments linked to their corporate purpose, as reported by CriptoNoticias.
The authorized companies are Ingenius Tecnologías, Dofleini, La Calesa Real, La Meknica, Cema Soltec, El Asadito, Pasarela Digital SURL, Ara, DQ Dasqom SURL and the Mixed Company Productos Sanitarios SA (Prosa).
Operations must be carried out through virtual asset service providers (VASP) that are also licensed by the BCC. The authorization has an initial validity of one year, extendable.
This measure is part of the regulatory process that began in 2021, when Cuba recognized the use of cryptocurrencies in commercial transactions. In 2022, the mandatory licensing regime for providers of these services was established.
Over the past five years, Cuba has evolved from initial recognition of cryptocurrencies, included in the Communist Party’s economic guidelines in 2021, to more structured regulation.
That year, the BCC issued regulations that enabled its use in commercial transactions under supervision. In April 2022, the resolution was published that requires companies to obtain an official license to operate with virtual assets.
During this period, entrepreneurs like García Cruz promoted the practical adoption of Bitcoin to circumvent international financial restrictions and facilitate remittances.
The authorization of the first ten licenses in March 2026 marks a step towards the formalization of the sector, in a context where cryptocurrencies have served as a tool for foreign trade despite the limitations of the traditional financial system.