Mehmet Şimşek, speaking at the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly on the 2024 budget of the Ministry of Treasury and Finance, gave a clear date for the first time for cryptocurrency regulation. Şimşek said that they will bring the cryptocurrency regulation to the Parliament in January 2024.
“We Continue to Fight Against Money Laundering with Determination”
Şimşek, in his speech at the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly on the 2024 budget of the Ministry of Treasury and Finance, stated that the tax burden in Turkey is not as high as claimed, emphasizing that the overall tax burden in the country is 20.8%, making it the third lowest among 38 OECD member countries. He pointed out that the share of taxes on income and profits within the national income is 5.8%, which is less than half of the OECD average. In his speech, he expressed that the main problem is not the burden of indirect taxes, but the insufficiency of direct tax revenues.
Şimşek pointed out that the main reasons for the inadequacy of direct taxes are exemptions and exceptions in income and corporate taxes, as well as unregistered economic activities. He mentioned that there are significant exemptions and exceptions for various sectors, which significantly explain the national income disparity.
Furthermore, he stated that they are determined in their fight against unregistered economic activities, sharing that in 2023 they prepared reports and information on 14,525 individuals within 1,624 files and shared them with judicial authorities, law enforcement, and intelligence units. He emphasized that they are conducting an effective fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, and mentioned that they have met the necessary technical conditions to be removed from the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) grey list.
“With Cryptocurrency Regulation, We Will Remove Turkey from the Grey List”
In his speech, Şimşek also addressed cryptocurrency regulation, stating that Turkey has become compliant with 39 of the 40 FATF standards. He mentioned that a letter sent to him after FATF’s October meeting confirmed this progress and that the only remaining issue was cryptocurrency regulation, saying:
We plan to complete the legal regulation for cryptocurrencies in January. However, this regulation alone is not enough. Effective implementation is also necessary to be removed from the grey list. We have made significant progress in this area and shared these advancements with FATF. Although there may be objections from other countries, Turkey’s progress will be recognized over time. We believe that Turkey will be removed from the grey list next year.
