The Cuban government and independent online news site El Toque traded blows this week after state media accused the site of manipulating the black market to impoverish Cubans and fuel unrest on the Caribbean island.
The website El Toque (eltoque.com) angered the administration of Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel by publishing an exchange rate of Cuban pesos to the dollar much higher than the two official levels set by his government.
This week, Cuban state media intensified its criticism of El Toque, saying the site’s currency tracking system – by far the most widespread on the island – amounted to “financial terrorism”.
“El Toque is secretly financed by the United States and establishes a false value of the peso against the dollar,” said an article published by state media CubaDebate. “The strategy aims to spur (large-scale) protests in Cuba.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the allegations.
The dispute over the currency tracker comes as the Cuban peso has lost nearly half its value against the dollar in 2024 alone, according to El Toque, a devastating free fall that has reduced the purchasing power of Cubans already shaken by the economic crisis. inflation and shortages.
Cubans increasingly demand more expensive dollars, which they see as a haven against currency shocks, as well as for migration and the purchase of food and fuel on an island increasingly dependent on the dollar.
El Toque defends his online currency tracking service, saying Cuba’s claims, which some state media say could lead to criminal prosecution, are “ridiculous and implausible.”
“The Communist Party has decided to make our platform, elToque, a scapegoat to justify its failure,” Jose Jasan Nieves, editor-in-chief of the Miami-based El Toque, said in an email to readers.
El Toque says it calculates its exchange rate by using artificial intelligence to analyze messages posted online where buyers and sellers indicate their expected buy or sell prices for different currencies.
Independent economists on and off the island said the rapid depreciation of the peso followed a crippling contraction in domestic production and exports, a widening fiscal deficit and strong demand for scarce dollars.
The Cuban government has promised for months to take decisive measures to stem the fall in the peso, but has yet to announce new measures.
