Mehmet Ali Akben

Mehmet Ali Akben, the head of the Turkish banking watchdog, has said that loan limits for locally produced automobiles will be expanded in the upcoming months.

The Turkish banking sector is "very strong," said the Central Bank governor on Nov. 25 after meeting with public and private banking officials and bank CEOs.

The Turkish banking sector is also one of the most successful ones in the world, Şahap Kavcıoğlu told a group journalists after the meeting in Istanbul, Turkey's commercial capital.

Turkish state-owned lenders have created an extra credit volume of 27.5 billion Turkish Liras (about $4 billion) in the last 10 days, the head of the country's banking watchdog has said, criticizing the private banks for the contraction of their credit pool some 5 billion liras ($737.2 million) in the same period.

The Bank of China (BOC) has received permission to operate a deposit bank in Turkey through the investment of $300 million, Turkey's banking watchdog said late Jan. 13, according to Anadolu Agency. 

In a statement, the country's Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) said BOC had brought the "required capital" and would apply to start operating shortly.      

There is no sign of deterioration in the Turkish banking sector's nonperforming loans or assets quality, which could disturb the system, the head of the Turkish Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency said on Jan. 9, describing a recent Moody's report as "ill-intentioned."

Three foreign banks have voiced strong interest in Turkey and they are likely to enter Turkish markets in 2017, Mehmet Ali Akben, the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) head, has said. 

Akben said they were lenders from the Gulf region that had banking licenses in Turkey, such as the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, which recently opened a representative office in Turkey. 

Lending in local currencies should be considered as an opportunity to enhance trade relations with countries like Russia and China, head of a Turkish banking watchdog said on Dec. 21.

The Bank of China will likely start operations in Turkey by the end of 2016, the head of Turkey's banking watchdog has told Anadolu Agency. 

Bank of China has completed its application to receive a banking license in Turkey after submitting the required documents, according to the head of the country's banking watchdog. 

Two lenders from Iran are planning to take license to do business in the Turkish market, said the head of Turkey's banking watchdog. 

"We have taken demands from Iranian banks. Two Iranian lenders want to take banking license in Turkey," said the head of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK), Mehmet Ali Akben, on March 16.