FSB Recommends Stablecoin Rules For Türkiye After Crypto Review

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has recommended that Türkiye establish a dedicated regime for stablecoins, after finding that rules for crypto platforms leave gaps in the oversight of the tokens' issuers.

In its peer review published on 11th November 2026, the international body called for rules on stablecoins pegged to conventional currencies. They would cover the assets backing those tokens, holders' rights to exchange them for money and the arrangements supporting their target value. Its recommendations are non-binding and do not themselves change Turkish law.

Platform rules govern services that list or hold tokens. The FSB says Türkiye has some oversight of stablecoins through rules on platforms, trading and custody, but no comprehensive framework for the organisations issuing them. Our stablecoin guide explains how reserves and redemption support a token's value.

A Payments Ban Leaves Other Uses In Scope

Türkiye already prohibits crypto assets from being used directly or indirectly in payments. The central bank's 2021 regulation also bars payment service providers from building payment or electronic-money business models around them.

The FSB also describes an amendment under which some currency-pegged tokens can qualify as electronic money, a separate legal category outside the crypto payment ban. The report says this creates a possible payment route, but leaves uncertainty pending implementing rules from the central bank.

The crypto payments ban addresses a different activity from holding and trading tokens. The FSB report says market participants described users holding stablecoins to hedge against lira depreciation, or buying dollar-pegged tokens before moving funds to foreign platforms. It found limited evidence of widespread domestic retail merchant payments using stablecoins.

The review recommends retaining safeguards against foreign-currency stablecoins in domestic payments. It also seeks clearer controls on the distribution of foreign-issued, foreign-currency tokens through Turkish crypto service providers, including expectations for reserve composition and transparency. The authorities should strengthen cooperation with the issuer's home supervisor. The distinction between trading and payment rules is also covered in our guide to crypto regulation.

What Domestic Records Capture

The FSB report records more than 7.1 million crypto accounts associated with 5.3 million entities, with positive balances in 51% of accounts, based on information from Turkish authorities.

Official records cited by the FSB show approximately $3 billion in crypto holdings registered with Turkish service providers in 2026. That measure excludes assets in users' own wallets and with providers outside the regulated reporting system, including those established abroad.

The FSB identifies BiLira (TRYB) as Türkiye's sole domestically issued stablecoin and puts its market capitalisation at about $5.9 million. That report figure does not measure Turkish users' holdings of stablecoins issued elsewhere.

The FSB also recommends completing the transition from interim platform registration to full licensing on a defined schedule, improving reporting and developing indicators of connections between crypto activity and the wider financial system. Its review reflects reform information through August 2026 and focuses on financial stability, rather than assessing consumer protection or money-laundering risks.