AREQUIPA, Peru – Cuba’s Minister of Tourism, Juan Carlos García, announced that transactions with Russian MIR cards on the Island since December 2023 amounted to 2.7 million dollars.
A report from the state agency Prensa Latina indicates that the official held a press conference at the headquarters of the TASS News agency in Havana, where he mentioned that there are about 20,000 point-of-sale terminals in Cuba that accept MIR cards.
“They are located in the main markets, at the main tourist spots throughout the entire country. I am sure that in the future, the number of these points, where MIR cards are accepted, will continue to grow. We are creating all the conditions for this to happen,” García stated.
Likewise, the minister pointed out that the possibility of using the Russian card at ATMs in Cuba has existed for a year and, as of December 2023, there is also the opportunity to use the card to make payments for basic consumer services in stores and restaurants or for car rentals.
“Our task is to do everything we can to make the stay of Russian tourists in Cuba as comfortable as possible,” he added.
According to García, Cubans can use the MIR card since the card is issued by Russian banks, and any citizen can open one individually. “They can use it to pay for services in Cuba,” he explained.
In March 2024, the option to withdraw cash from MIR cards will be available at all ATMs in Cuba.
The Russian cards are added to other international ones such as Visa and MasterCard, which foreign citizens use across the Island for various financial operations.
The use of MIR cards on the Island is part of a process of “Russification” of the economy that initially seeks to offer Russian tourists more options when paying for services and also to be the payment platform for investors.
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