Turkey tightens crypto AML regulations to curb financial crime
Turkey has announced that it has enacted new cryptocurrency laws, driven by successful regulatory changes across the world.
According to a December 25 document published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Turkey, users who conduct transactions totaling more than 15,000 Turkish lira ($425) will have to provide the country's crypto service providers with their personal information under the new system.
Turkey’s new regulations scheduled to take effect next year
The new rules will take effect in Turkey on February 25, 2025. The aim of the new Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rule is to prevent cryptocurrency transactions from being used to finance terrorism and launder illegal funds.
According to the new bill, a crypto transfer may be classified as "risky" if a provider is unable to obtain the required information from a sender, allowing the service provider to think about stopping it.
Crypto service providers are exempt from collecting data for transfers of digital assets under $425. The service providers will also have to use wallet addresses that were not previously registered with them to obtain identifying information from clients following the implementation, the post added.
Turkey’s cryptocurrency regulations
2024 saw a resurgence of activity among Turkish cryptocurrency companies, as 47 applications for licenses under the new regulation were received by the Turkish Capital Markets Board (CMB) in the months leading up to August. Applications increased after the law on Amendments to the Capital Markets Law took effect on July 2.
The laws governing cryptocurrency trading in Turkey allow individuals to purchase, hold, and exchange cryptocurrency, but since 2021, it has been illegal to use it to make payments. However, one of the most important trade partners of Turkey, Russia has been actively experimenting with digital financial assets (DFA) in international trade in accordance with the country's laws.
In an interview on the state-run news channel Russia-24 on December 25, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov stated that the Russian government had enacted laws allowing international trade in DFAs and Bitcoin. Siluanov said in the post that the country is allowed to use Bitcoin in foreign trade.
Although cryptocurrency profits are not taxed in Turkey, a small transaction tax of 0.03% is being considered in order to support the country's budget. With an estimated $170 billion in trading volume as of September 2023, Turkey surpassed major markets like Russia and Canada to become the fourth-largest cryptocurrency market globally, according to Chainalysis.
Europe's markets in crypto-assets bill
Turkey's new regulatory bill coincides with heightened interest in crypto regulation, one week before Europe's Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) bill, the first comprehensive crypto regulatory framework in the world, is scheduled to take effect on December 30.
Disclaimer
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