LBank Heralds Major Blockchain Adoption In Turkey

The Central Bank of Turkey (CBRT) completed CBDC tests in December 2022 and the government is currently planning to use blockchain technology for online public services. Both signal an even stronger embrace of blockchain technology in 2023.

"Turkey is an exciting market that ranks among the top 10 in crypto adoption globally,” said Allen Wei, Co-Founder and CEO of LBank Exchange. “Efforts such as these show Turkey’s determination to push for wider blockchain integration in the country. It’s a boost for the digital Turkish lira and a positive step from the forward-looking government.”

Since the Turkish government unveiled its plan for a national blockchain infrastructure in 2019, Turkey has had many ambitious blockchain-based goals. However, besides specific project announcements, there have been few deliverables. This looks set to change in 2023, with several promising projects at an advanced stage of development.

A recent statement from the CBRT revealed that “the first payment transactions on the Digital Turkish Lira Network were executed successfully.” It said that further advanced-stage tests will be run in the first quarter of 2023, and selected banks and financial technology companies will be chosen to be included in the expansion. 

The official announcement for a CBDC came in September of 2021. Initially, the CBRT did not commit to a digital Turkish lira. However, the most recent statement mentions that “the CBRT will continue to run tests for authentic architectural setups designed in areas such as the use of distributed ledger technologies in payment systems and the integration of these technologies with instant payment systems.”

“Testing and successful completion of the digital Turkish lira is seen as a big step towards rolling out a digital lira,” said Adem Özkan Özdil, LBank Community Manager for Turkey. Beyond Turkey’s CBDC, the government has made other commitments, such as testing and integrating blockchain technology in public services.

Amid the news about the digital Turkish lira, the Vice President of Turkey, Fuat Oktay, announced plans for a blockchain-based digital identity application during the Digital Turkey 2023 event. Many public services, including residential matters and military services, will be integrated into the E-Devlet portal, which will use a blockchain-based digital identity and login system. 

Turkey first shared its vision to utilize blockchain technology in public services in 2019. In its Strategy 2023 presentation, Turkey’s Ministry of Industry and Technology put blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) as one of the priorities of 2020. 

Furthermore, the city of Konya, one of the most important cultural centers of Turkey, revealed in 2020 that it was planning to develop a “city coin” and use blockchain technology to fund social programs. Konya served as an initial test to see how blockchain technology works with public services on a large scale.