Turkey bars 3 foreign banks from FX transactions

ANKARA- Anadolu Agency

Turkey has blocked three foreign banks- BNP Paribas, Citibank, and UBS- from doing foreign exchange transactions with the Turkish lira, the nation’s banking watchdog announced on May 7. 

These banks failed to complete their Turkish lira commitments and so defaulted, said Turkey’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA).

The move followed reports saying some London-based financial institutions are engaged in manipulative attacks aimed at depreciating the Turkish lira, by buying foreign currency from the market.

The move will prevent “transactions and applications that might endanger the operation of banks” as well as ensure the credit system works effectively, said a BRSA statement.

The banking authority aims to protect the rights of both savings holders and banks in Turkey.