Cuba, the island nation suffering decades-long embargoes with the US, has now turned to cryptocurrencies. It is procuring goods from a globalized e-commerce world.

The spread of mobile internet, last year has let the Cubans shop online for goods that are given for most markets. Cubans cannot acquire banking services, debit and credit cards beyond direct trade. This is because the US trade embargo excludes them from doing so. However, the locals have found ways to acquire crypto assets which happen to be still censorship-free. A 35-year-old Jason Sanchez started buying spare parts online last year for his cellphone repair shop in Havana. This is because of the advent of cryptocurrency in Communist-run Cuba. The country might seem unlikely hotbed for cryptocurrencies, thanks to the analog past.

A year ago the country witnessed the roll-out of mobile internet. It thus opened the world of cryptocurrency for the Cubans. Crypto enthusiasts in the island country have multiplied. This is because the currency has helped them overcome obstacles created by US sanctions on Cuba. Fusyona is the first crypto exchange in Cuba. The firm uses the money of people living abroad and wishing to send remittances to Cuba to invest in any of the nine major cryptocurrencies. According to Alex Sobrino, the founder of Telegram channel CubaCripto, roughly 1,000 Cubans use cryptocurrencies.

The purchase of cryptocurrencies in Cuba is still in a gray legal field. It is unlikely that it will become a regular habit for the 11.2 million inhabitants of the island in the short term as per the source.