Article
CBRT abolished FX protected deposit support for entities with foreign exchange liabilities
Communiqué NO. 2023/6
The repealed Communiqué No. 2023/6 aimed to encourage transition from FX to TL, with advantages provided to companies converting their FX accounts to TL, and protected companies against exchange rate risk during this transition.
According to the Communiqué No. 2023/6, domestic legal entities were able to request their FX balances (in US Dollars, euros, and British pounds) held in banks to be converted into TL, up to the amount of their declared FX liabilities. The balances in the FX deposit accounts and FX participation accounts were converted to TL and the banks opened a TL deposit or TL participation account with a maturity ranging from one month to one year. If (i) the exchange rate at the end of the maturity date was higher than the exchange rate at the beginning of the maturity date and (ii) the amount calculated based on the exchange rate difference was higher than the interest or profit share to be paid by the bank, the difference was transferred by the CBRT to the relevant bank to be paid to the account-holding entity. Therefore, the principal amount in FX was protected at the end of the maturity date. However, in order to receive this support, the account-holding entities were required to commit not to purchase FX during the term of the account.
Conclusion
The Monetary Policy for 2025 published by the CBRT on December 25, 20241 stated that the CBRT will continue macroprudential steps and simplification in terms of TL assets and deposits, and that the KKM scheme will be terminated in 2025. As explained above, with the Communiqué No. 2025/I published in the first Official Gazette of the year, CBRT has abolished the FX protected deposit support, showing the CBRT’s resolve on this matter. Further steps from the CBRT in relation to similar macroprudential measures can be expected in the following days of 2025.
Footnotes
1. Monetary Policy for 2025, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Merkez Bankası