Turkey tightens crypto regulations with new rules for exchanges, custodians

Turkey is advancing its cryptocurrency regulations with new rules for crypto asset service providers (CASPs).

On March 13, Turkey’s Capital Markets Board (CMB) published two regulatory documents regarding the licensing and operations of CASPs, including crypto exchanges, custodians and wallet service providers.

The framework grants the CMB full oversight of crypto platforms, ensuring compliance with national and international standards.

An excerpt from the title page of the CASP regulation document by the CMB. Source: Official Gazette

It also sets standards and requirements for establishing and providing crypto asset services in Turkey, covering establishment capital, history of executives, shareholder rules and others.

Under the framework, the minimum capital requirement for exchanges is $4.1 million, while custodians are required to have at least $13.7 million, international attorney Burcak Ünsal told Cointelegraph.

“Fixed assets, receivables, available for sale financial assets are excluded from the minimum capital requirement,” he noted.

Additionally, CASPs will be required to invest in compliance infrastructure and establish dedicated risk management teams to identify and manage a range of risks. The providers must also establish a price monitoring system to alert suspicious trading activity.

Turkish CASPs must adhere to stringent reporting requirements, providing the CMB with timely information about their operations.

The new framework also further strengthens Turkey’s crypto Anti-Money Laundering (AML) standards, requiring CASPs to record significant data sets of transaction information, including canceled and unexecuted transactions.

An excerpt from CMB’s CASP regulation document (translated by Google). Source: Official Gazette

Turkey previously introduced crypto AML regulations in December 2024, requiring users to share identifying information with CASPs for transactions of more than 15,000 Turkish liras ($409).

According to Ünsal, the CMB’s framework also prohibits derivative transactions with crypto.

On the other hand, exchanges are entitled to launch initial coin offerings provided that they review the relevant smart contracts and ensure listing criteria.

“The crypto regulations are mute about how security tokens are defined. However, the issuance of security tokens is not prohibited,” the attorney noted. “Buying goods and services with crypto in Turkiye remains prohibited due to Central Bank regulations,” he added.

According to the lawyer, the regulations have different grace periods to enter into force, with most of them entering into force on June 30, 2025, and by the end of the year at the latest.

According to the document, Turkey’s new crypto regulations align with global standards and follow regulatory approaches set by Europe’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

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