Cuba ordered to pay $24 million in damages to Cayman Islands creditor

Mexico City, Mexico – A ruling by a United Kingdom’s commercial court ordered Cuba’s National Bank (BNC) to pay more than £18 million (US$24 million) in damages to the CRF I Limited fund. The decision, issued by Justice Andrew Baker, also sets a 14-day deadline for payment.

The ruling marks the end of a long legal battle over Cuban sovereign debt totaling around $78 million, stemming from loans signed in the 1980s.

In a statement published on July 31, CRF CEO David Charters noted that, unlike previous judicial decisions, this time the court “conclusively established CRF’s standing as BNC’s lawful creditor and its right to pursue the debt”.

CRF CEO David Charters. Image credit: Front Row Group

The statement also disclosed the private fund’s attempt to approach Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on June 22 of this year, which went unanswered. 

In the letter allegedly sent to the Cuban leader, the creditors proposed “confidential discussions” and “possible solutions, including growth-linked instruments, debt-for-equity arrangements and other structures designed to preserve Cuba’s near-term liquidity”.

BNC –now Banco Central de Cuba (BCC)– has not responded to the court’s latest ruling. In the past, however, it has labeled CRF a “vulture fund” and has refused to recognize its legitimacy as a creditor.

One of the arguments used by the Cuban defense since the case began in 2020 was that BNC had lost the authority to negotiate on behalf of the Cuban government after it became BCC in 1997. 

The Cuban side also claimed the fund had bribed bank officials to obtain the signature authorizing CRF as the new creditor.

The Cayman Islands-based fund, which is the largest holder of Cuba’s external debt, has said that it does not rule out a negotiated solution but will “continue pursuing its remaining claims and to seek further judgments where necessary”. 

The most recent ruling marks CRF’s fifth consecutive victory in UK courts. 

The fund previously won at the High Court, defeated an appeal by BNC, prevailed again before the Court of Appeal in November 2024, and saw the UK Supreme Court reject BNC’s final appeal in March 2025 — clearing the way for the damages assessment that led to this month’s judgment.

Featured image: UK Royal Courts of Justice

Image credit: www.judiciary.uk