Turkish Central Bank is Supportive of Digital Currencies

During the last year, given Bitcoin’s price surges, more and more governments, and financial institutions are starting to notice the digital currency and the potential that it has to revolutionize the financial market. Recently, officials in Turkey have also begun studying bitcoin and its implications.

In a recent press statement, the president of the Central Bank of Turkey (CBRT), Murat Cetinkaya mentioned that the financial institution he presides is closely following the development of bitcoin, and also made a few optimistic statements about it.

With this in mind, the CBRT has recently formed a research group, meant to further study and monitor bitcoin. The bank official also mentioned that at this time, the financial law of Turkey does not regulate digital currencies, yet citizens should be aware of all risks associated with bitcoin investments. Regardless of this, it seems like Cetinkaya has a positive view of bitcoin, as he mentioned that cryptocurrencies can contribute to financial stability in the region.

Following the political crisis that happened in Turkey, the popularity of bitcoin has increased considerably. Now, there are numerous companies offering exchange service, but also infrastructure providers giving people access to services such as being able to receive salaries in bitcoin, digital currency cards and more. Additionally, P2P exchange services have also seen a massive growth during the last couple of months. Retailers in Turkey remain undecided as to whether they should accept bitcoin as a form of payment for goods and services. This could soon change, as recently, the owners of an apartment complex in Ankara begun accepting bitcoin as a method of payment for the apartments that they sell.

The demand for digital currencies skyrocketed back in 2016, when the Turkish Lira lost a good amount of its value due to the political crisis that Turkey was involved in. This has led to numerous people exchanging their liras for other fiat currencies and for digital assets. Once this happen, President Erdogan attempted to convince the population to convert their foreign currencies into the Lira again.

At this time, we are unsure whether any legislative framework is being drafted for the regulation of bitcoin.