Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

Turks turn to crypto to ‘escape’ currency fluctuations

By Shruthi Nair

As blockchain platform Tether introduces the first dirham-pegged stablecoin – cryptocurrencies whose value is tied to a currency, commodity or financial instrument – in the UAE, AGBI looks into how unstable economies such as Turkey have used cryptocurrencies as a hedge against inflation.

Turkey banned the use of cryptocurrencies for payments in 2021, the same year the financial action task force downgraded it to the grey list over money laundering concerns.

However, the Turkish lira is the most traded currency on Tether, ahead of the dollar and euro, as investors see Tether as an “escape point”, according to crypto expert Helin Celik.

Watch the full video to find out how the UAE plans on using stablecoins

More videos from AGBI

Latest articles

Saudi hotel llicences. Hajj pilgrims from Indonesia at a hotel in Mecca. Pilgrimages form a large part of Saudi Arabia's tourism goals

Saudi Arabia scraps hotel licence fees to draw investment

Saudi Arabia has removed licensing fees for hotels and resorts in a further effort to increase tourism and improve the kingdom’s investment environment.  The Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Municipalities and Housing said they would ask hotel establishments to reapply for operating licences online. The decision applies to hotels, hotel apartments and residential resorts.  […]

Mubadala Getir New York

Mubadala applies to take full control of Turkey’s Getir

The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala has formally applied to take full control of the Turkish grocery delivery startup Getir. Mubadala had taken a majority controlling stake in the company in June this year as part of a restructuring programme, with a capital injection of $250 million. The filing to take over Getir was […]

PIF spending Yasir Al-Rumayyan

PIF spending to hit $70bn a year early, says IMF

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund will raise its annual spending to $70 billion in 2025, a year earlier than previously announced, according to an International Monetary Fund official.  PIF’s governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan told a Saudi investment summit in February that the sovereign wealth fund would increase its annual capital spending from around $50 billion a […]