The head of an international banking group recently expressed optimism about Turkey’s economic outlook and said he was closely monitoring developments in the country’s economic, financial and banking sectors.
“A change is happening in the Turkish economy. We hope that the outlook for the Turkish economy will become much better soon. As bankers, we want to be part of this,” Hedwige Nuyens, managing director of the International Federation of Banks (IBfed), told Anadolu Agency (AA) in an interview.
Noting that the banking sector is one of the key stakeholders in any economy, Nuyens said: “All Turkish banks are working closely with the Central Bank and political authorities to help Turkish society confront inflation and rising prices. We are seeing some success. There is growing confidence that the economy will stabilize.”
She pointed out that Turkey is a great country that has managed to attract both very strong international banks and foreign companies, and said there are very successful joint ventures between foreign and Turkish banks.
“So I think Turkey has been very successful and has really expanded its cooperation internationally, especially in the Arab world,” said Nuyens, who was in Istanbul as part of the International Arab Banking Summit.
Nuyens noted that the Istanbul Financial Center (IFC) has been effective in increasing the city’s importance in the financial sector, saying, “Turkey has a very special distinction of being a country that can integrate East and West.”
Nuens emphasized that Turkey has great potential, saying, “Turkey has a large young population, low unemployment and the outlook remains bright. I think we should continue investing in Turkey and consider further cooperation.”
She added that Turkey is attracting attention from the Arab world, adding: “Doing good business in Turkey also increases our chances of cooperation with Arab countries. Of course, there are still many uncertainties, but the economy is growing in confidence and I think it will be confident in the coming years.”
Nuyens noted that the banking industry around the world is undergoing a major shift from a focus on growth – a strong pillar of the economy – to a focus on sustainability.
Describing this as a complete change, she said we need to look not just at growth but also at how to move to net zero, how to deal with climate change and the population decline we will see in the coming years.
Nuyens also stressed the importance of finding common interests in cooperation between the Turkish and British banking and financial sectors, saying, “The question is to see how cooperation can be mutually beneficial for both countries.”
“Turkey is in fact an open economy and has always been a reliable partner for the UK and the whole European Union. We need to focus on cooperation and what we can do together. I think we as bankers have a big role to play in this regard.”
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