The 2024 Turkish Presidential Annual Program, officially published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Turkey on October 25, outlines the government’s intent to finalize cryptocurrency regulations in the country by the end of 2024.

According to Article 400.5 in this extensive document, there are outlined plans to establish a clear legal framework for crypto assets, with potential taxation measures to follow. Additionally, crypto asset providers, including cryptocurrency exchanges, will be formally defined within this framework. However, the document does not provide further specifics on the forthcoming regulations.

It’s worth noting that in September 2023, the former CEO of the Turkish crypto exchange Thodex, Faruk Fatih Özer, received an extensive prison sentence of 11,196 years from a Turkish court. Thodex, once a major trading platform in Turkey, faced a sudden and dramatic collapse in 2021.

According to a study conducted in 2022, Turkey ranked as the world’s second-highest country in terms of cryptocurrency-related search inquiries, with 5.5% of its population actively engaging in them. This surge in interest is attributed to an elevenfold increase in cryptocurrency usage throughout 2021, driven by the ongoing inflation crisis affecting the local fiat currency, the Turkish lira.

In December 2022, the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey successfully concluded the initial trial of its central bank digital currency, the digital lira, and has outlined plans to continue testing it throughout 2024. Although the government has yet to make a formal commitment to fully digitize the country’s currency, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has consistently voiced his support for the digital lira initiative.