Banking regulator: Sector solid against exchange volatility

The Turkish banking watchdog, the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK), said yesterday that the Turkish banking sector is solid. Speaking to Anadolu Agency's Finance Desk in Ankara, BDDK President Mehmet Ali Akben said Turkish banks are not vulnerable to the effects of the depreciation of the Turkish lira, which hit a historic low of about 2.93 against the dollar yesterday. Akben highlighted that, on the contrary, the Turkish banking sector is expanding. "Some small banks in Turkey want to grow by making domestic acquisitions," he said. "Meanwhile, banks from some countries that have not yet entered our market are working to do so and some seriously want to enter. When they meet the conditions, we are ready to open our market to them."

"Turkey is one of the rare countries in the world that is not recapitalizing its banks. In many countries, governments are forced to recapitalize banks, but Turkey does not have this problem," he said, adding: "We do not expect that to happen. Deposits in Turkish banks were at $63 billion during the banking crisis in 2001. Currently, we're talking about TL 1.2 trillion [$415 billion] in deposits in Turkish banks."

According to Akben, the Turkish elections and their aftermath are a cause of the volatility. "The election process affects finance in any country; volatility increases until the new government takes office. But this kind of activity has been reduced in Turkey over the past 10 years." Akben also praised the strong banking sector, stressing: "We have a strong banking structure and a high level of capital adequacy. When we compare Turkish banking with developing countries, Europe and the U.S., Turkey's banking sector has great potential.