Are you thinking of investing in Turkey? You therefore need to know all aspects of dealings with Turkish banks, no matter the sector you intend to invest in. Dealing with these banks is easy, due to the amount of interest you can earn.
If you intend to buy a property and move to Turkey, you will find that opening a bank account in this country is the best place to start. Reading this article will provide you with all the answers you need, and inform you about The best banks in Turkey.
What facilities do banks provide in Turkey?
Turkish banks allow foreign investors to open accounts in their names, whether they are individuals or companies, based on strong and safe financial systems and laws. Below are all the financial services offered by these banks:
- Opening bank account.
- Facilitating electronic payment operations.
- Transferring money inside and outside Turkey.
- Following up on banking procedures through specific applications that can be downloaded from the Google Play store on your mobile phone.
- Exchanging foreign currencies.
- Investing in precious metals such as gold, platinum and silver.
- Issuing credit cards.
- Mortgage and credit loan services.
- Paying various household bills.
The best banks in Turkey?
Banks in Turkey enjoyed a legislative law helping to make the most of the capital deposited in, knowing the best times to invest, and monitoring potential risks, increasing the ability of these institutions to make great decisions, providing permanent cash liquidity in local and foreign currencies, making them highly trusted by their customers.
This was contributed by the political and economic stability conditions in the country, and the laws that facilitate real estate ownership.
Here is a list of the best banks in Turkey:
Turkey Is bank
When talking about the best bank in Turkey, Isbank Turkey quickly comes to mind, as investors describe it as the “business bank” par excellence.
It was established in 1924, as the first public bank to be founded in the country, and it was gradually able to climb the list of the 100 best banks in the world, in terms of the value of the assets and the efficiency of capital management.
the main headquarters is in Istanbul, and has 1,350 branches in Turkey and countries such as the Netherlands, Britain, Germany, Kosovo, and the Russian Federation.
Therefore, wherever you go in this large country, you can find a branch to provide you with the service you need.
You can also have the possibility of dealing with the bank remotely via the Internet and mobile phone applications.
Turkish VakifBank
VakifBank is the second largest bank in Turkey in terms of the size of assets. It was founded in 1954 on a participatory system between several local companies.
It has 939 internal branches and four international branches in Bahrain, Qatar, Erbil, and New York. A few years ago, the bank’s management established another Islamic participatory bank, with financing from the Islamic Development Bank.
Ziraat Bank
It is one of the best and oldest banks in Turkey. It was founded in 1863 during the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.
It started from being a charitable fund providing loans to farmers and ended up becoming a bank that provides services to all professionals without exception.
the main headquarters is in the Altindag district of the capital, Ankara, and it has many branches inside and outside Turkey. It is considered by many to be the strongest bank in Turkey.
Garanti Bank in Turkey
It is also called the Social Security Bank, which is a private bank founded in Ankara in 1946.
It provides services to companies and small and medium-sized commercial institutions and deals with all local and foreign investments.
It has more than 880 branches throughout Turkey, and 8 branches on the islands of Cyprus and Malta. It is undoubtedly one of the best banks in Turkey.
Yapi Kredi Bank
Founded in 1944, with financial assets that made it one of the largest banks in Turkey. It is a commercial bank that deals with companies and has many internal and external branches, and a huge ATM network.
Takasbank
It is one of the Turkish banks dedicated to investment and development, as it is characterized by the ease of granting loans to encourage industrial investments, which contributes to reviving the industrial sector in Turkey to a large extent.
QNB Bank
Founded in 1987 in Istanbul, and quickly attracted several subsidiaries abroad. It has branches in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, not to mention 700 branches inside Turkey.
It is famous for its large loans, which made it one of the best banks in Turkey and the most attractive to foreign investors.
Islamic banks in Turkey
The Turkish banking system embraces an environment that supports all types of financial transactions, including those that adhere to the provisions of Islamic Sharia and are free of bank interest.
The following are the most prominent banks that are considered among the best banks in Turkey:
Kuveyt Turk Bank
The Kuwait Turkish Bank was established in 1989 as a private financial institution that represents several other institutions in Kuwait and Turkey, the largest of which is the Kuwait Finance Corporation.
It relies on the interest-free banking system, providing highly efficient and rapid services to customers and businessmen, taking advantage of modern technical methods.
Al Baraka Turkish Bank
It is one of the first participatory Islamic banks in Turkey, it is also considered one of the foreign banks in Turkey.
It was founded by the Bahraini Al Baraka Group in 1985 in Istanbul, and provides services to thousands of clients inside and outside Turkey, while working as a representative of some public and private agencies dealing with social security services and pensions, in addition to foreign trade services such as import, export, and foreign currency transfers. It has 236 branches inside the country and two branches in Erbil and Baghdad.
Ziraat Katilim bank
It is a participatory bank between the public and private sectors, and it was opened in 2015, to specialize in partnership with various projects, in addition to consumer financing, and Islamic licensing of credit cards.
It has 166 branches, and is one of the best banks in Turkey, especially for those interested in Islamic banking procedures.
Arab Turkish Bank
A joint project between Libya and Turkey dating back to the 1970s providing a wide range of banking services to individuals and companies, such as deposits, loans, credit cards, foreign exchange, and investments.
It also allows customers to choose to deal with the banking system subject to Islamic Sharia.
It has more than 200 branches within the country and a strong presence in mobile applications.
Interest rate in Turkey for the year 2024
To fight inflation, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Turkish Central Bank decided in March 2024 to raise the key interest rate, as the bank increased the interest rate from 45% to 50%, by 500 basis points.
Analysts believe that this will increase borrowing costs by more than 5 times. These decisions will apply to the interests of the Turkish Ziraat Bank and other banks in Turkey.
How to open a bank account in Turkey
It is difficult to continue living in Turkey without opening an account in a Turkish bank to keep up with the requirements of modern life, as this will make your life easier, manage your expenses and pay your bills, as well as enjoy the benefits of lending and investing through these banks.
Opening a bank account requires some paperwork that is easy to get.
Here are the documents required by the best banks in Turkey:
- Passport, or residence permit (residence card).
- Presenting the tax number, which can be obtained by personally visiting the tax department in your area, presenting your passport there, and then obtaining a tax number for foreigners.
- Proof of residential address, preferably represented by a residence permit.
- Sign the bank registration form.
- Provide information about the source of your funds and income.
- Submit the aforementioned papers to the desired bank branch, then follow up on the transaction within the branch or online, noting that Turkish bank websites support the local language and English, and some of them support the Arabic language.
How to open an account in Kuveyt Turk Bank?
The steps for opening an account in Kuveyt Turk Bank are not different from those in other Turkish banks, noting that many Arabs prefer this bank thanks to the ease of communication in the Arabic language and the commitment to the provisions of Islamic Sharia.
Electronic payment methods in Turkey
Electronic payment allows to make financial payments, using the Internet, without having to be present in the place to pay in cash. This feature of Turkish banks allows communication flexibility to a great extent.
Below are the most important electronic payment methods in Turkey:
- Payment using a credit card or bank card is the most common method.
- Opening an electronic payment account, by obtaining an electronic portal to receive online payments from your customers, if you are a business owner. In this case, you should visit the bank of your choice and apply to open a virtual point of sale. You will be asked for proof that you own a licensed company. But the easiest step is to resort to Turkish electronic payment gateways because their transactions are faster compared to banks.
Among the most prominent Turkish electronic payment gateways are:
- Papara
- HepsiPay
- Ininal
- BKM Express
- Paycell
- Fastpay
Create a Payoneer account in Turkey
The Payoneer platform features digital payment services to facilitate electronic commerce around the world and is available in 190 countries, including Turkey. You can create a Payoneer account in Turkey via the platform’s official website, and manage the account via the mobile application. Your identity, bank statement, and a paper containing your residential address, along with your passport and rental contract, will be requested. Then you must follow the following steps:
- Open the official Payoneer Bank website
- Click on the sign-up icon, then specify the nature of your work and your purpose of using Payoneer
- Click again on the subscription registration icon and choose the language you want, and the type of your work if you are an individual or a company.
- Enter your personal information in English (name, surname, email, and date of birth)
- Specify the country, address, city name, zip code, phone number, and verification code that arrived in a message to your phone.
- Create a password for your subscription.
- Choose a security question and write the answer.
- Enter your personal identification number, passport number, or driver’s license number.
- Write the code at the bottom of the page.
- Add your personal or company bank account information, indicating the country of the bank, the type of desired currency, and account information. Within days, you will receive your card from Payoneer Bank to your home according to the specified address.
Although there are some of the best banks in Turkey, that have proven to be efficient in banking transactions, some often prefer the Payoneer platform.
