Photo: RL Hevia
Text: Editorial Cuba Noticias 360
The Cuban government has issued another warning to MSME owners and self-employed workers, because if they do not update the online payment service in their businesses before February, their work license will be withdrawn.
Several points emerge: Does the country have the right infrastructure to apply payment gateways to all businesses? What will those for whom the online payment service is not feasible, due to the nature of their business or to avoid the inconveniences inherent to the platforms enabled for it, do?
The measure, which has attracted both favorable and unfavorable opinions, is the result of the banking process imposed by the government just a few months ago, which caused, among other causes, a liquidity crisis and long delays at ATMs.
Indeed, at this point in the championship, there are businesses that do not accept transfers, such as the case of the gastronomic complex of Zapata and 12, in Havana, according to a post on Facebook by independent art curator Abelardo Mena.
For example, in Matanzas and much of western Cuba, the deadline is February 2. And the government of that territory itself has clarified it: the work license will be removed from those who do not have the QR service to operate via payment gateway, as established by resolution 93/2023.
The deputy governor of Matanzas herself, Marieta Poey Zamora, stated that it is a consumer right, when they go to any state or private company, to choose how to pay: “the electronic option must exist in all state and non-state economic actors that carry out the activities regulated by the Ministry of Internal Trade (Mincin),” he noted.
Resolution 93/2023 of the Ministry of Internal Trade of Cuba emphasizes that sellers, whether natural or legal persons, will have to offer electronic payment methods, in addition to cash, starting in February.
The provision, it is the common opinion of those who apply it, aims to give options to those who prefer to carry out electronic transactions. Cash will not be eliminated, they made clear, as many customers don’t have the technology or simply choose not to use it.
That is, those who sell products or provide services must request their QR code through the national payment platforms, Transfermóvil or Enzona.
The concept itself is positive because it offers the possibility of another payment option. The negative probably lies in the short term that these subjects will have, and in factors that do not depend on them: such as the correct functioning of the platforms in the initial and simple authentication phase. Add to this the poor connectivity and absence of POS terminals, which do not work effectively even in MLC stores.
2024-01-11 17:55:58
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