From dawn, the official media hastened to spread notes of victory over the case. We spent hours poring over the 89-page verdict. Here we highlight the most important.
In the regime’s headlines, the debt is gone and the government in Havana has been showered with British justice.
Before showing you what we found during a careful examination of the 89-page verdict, we must remember: This is a real credit debt -without discussion- of more than 70 million euros that the investors of CRF I limited -registered in the Cayman Islands- They bought and have been trying to recover in Havana since 2019.
In an atmosphere of protests, the trial took place in the last week of January: the main argument in Havana was that BNC officials had initiated proceedings with creditors without the required authorization from the Cuban Ministry of Finance and Price.
In this regard, the judge decided that: “There was no representation of Cuba in the form of an authority (as a government) interacting with the CRF.”
Here, the verdict appears to remove responsibility from the Cuban government as a legal entity, but also says that:
“The Banco Nacional de Cuba, (owned by the Cuban government) acting on its behalf, accepted the assignment of the debt purchased by CRF to the Chinese bank ICBC.”
In other words: that the court recognizes the assignment of the debt as legitimate and that the British court has jurisdiction to develop claims against the Banco Nacional de Cuba”.
In a comprehensive statement that we summarize, the President of CRF I Limited indicated that “CRF remains committed to finding a solution with Cuba that has no impact on the Cuban budget for at least 5 years, recognizing the difficult economic situation to which the country faces.
We are trying to contact the President of CRF I Limited to find out what the next steps for the company will be. Investors can start a new process to request recognition of the debt, negotiate with the Cuban government or sue, only against the Banco Nacional de Cuba, which -in any case- would not have the legal capacity to settle this debt. without authorization. of the government of Havana.