The New Threshold of Digital Finance: Cryptocurrency Usage in Turkey and Its Social Repercussions

In recent years, there has been a common term on everyone’s lips in Turkey, from the bagel seller on the street to the well-established shopkeepers of the Grand Bazaar: Bitcoin. So, how did blockchain technology, which is a complex mathematical algorithm, turn into a “household name” in Turkey?

In his article Cryptocurrency Usage in Turkey Anthropology News published in 2020, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Erkan Saka discusses this phenomenon not only as a financial investment tool but also as a social assemblage.

Crypto as a Way of Life: Mesut’s Story

To understand the rise of cryptocurrencies in Turkey, it is necessary to look at human stories before statistics. Mesut, who is in Saka’s focus, is the most vivid example of this transformation. Mesut, who migrated from Southeastern Anatolia to Istanbul, is someone who cannot have an official bank account due to financial blockages and leads an “informal” life, so to speak.

Mesut would leave the house every morning saying “I’m going to my office” and spend the day in a coffee house in Balat. But his office wasn’t just a desk or a computer; his whole world was crypto exchanges that he followed through someone else’s iPhone registered on him. Mesut, who made his living entirely from this trade until the sharp decline of Bitcoin, was only interested in “how to make a profit”, not the complex details behind the technology. Mesut’s story is tangible proof of how cryptocurrencies have evolved into a tool for financial inclusion in Turkey.

Why Has Turkey Turned into a Cryptocurrency Center?

Turkey has been one of the countries that has been pushing for the top in global cryptocurrency usage since the “golden year” in 2017. According to research, Turkey; It is among the markets with the highest transaction volume next to giants such as the USA, China and Russia. We can list the main reasons behind this intense interest as follows:

• Economic Constraints: There is a positive correlation between crypto investment and economic challenges.
• Depreciation: With the depreciation of the Turkish lira in the fall of 2018, citizens turned to crypto assets to protect their savings.
• Non-Stigmatized Technology: Although there are some restrictions on internet freedom in Turkey, blockchain technology has not yet been stigmatized by the authorities, on the contrary, it has been met with curiosity.

In fact, this interest is so great that Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum, once had to ask why he received so many Turkish mentions on Twitter.

From Diyanet to TÜBİTAK: The Perspective of the Authorities

The position of cryptocurrencies in Turkey stands in a very interesting balance. Although the Presidency of Religious Affairs has a negative fatwa on cryptocurrencies, general authorities do not exclude this technology.

On the contrary; Many institutions, from the stock exchange to ministries, from TÜBİTAK to the private sector, support blockchain-based projects. Experts believe that the trust-based credit system in Turkey’s traditional “check-promissory note” culture may be easier to transfer to digital forms (blockchain) than expected. This is an indication of Turkey’s technological adaptability.

The Crypto Ecosystem as a Social Mechanism

Saka describes the crypto world not just as a “place to make money” but as a social assemblage where different actors interact. This complex ecosystem consists of the following actors

• Miners and Investors: They provide the basic functioning and financial volume of the system.
• Financial Journalists and Influencers: They manage the flow of information and popular perception.
• Start-ups and Software Developers: They build new use cases on the blockchain.
• Utopian Visionaries: A small group that dreams of an intermediary-free, anonymous, and decentralized economy.

A research day in this mechanism; It can start from a technical problem-solving session, to a discussion on possible regulations by authorities, and from there to meetings with Singapore-based companies to circumvent global restrictions.

Profit-Oriented Future and New Era

At the end of the day, the technological miracle of blockchain or the ideals of decentralization are secondary to the majority of users in Turkey. The main issue is how profitable the project is. Although Bitcoin and altcoins lose their dollar-based high values from time to time, this new era they started in Turkey is permanent.

Although Mesut has returned to his old textile business today, he is still waiting for the day when he will achieve prosperity with a new “rising wave” by following the screens on his phone. Cryptocurrencies are no longer just digital assets; It is a new social reality in which Turkey is articulated with economic crises, technological innovations and individual liberation stories.

So, when exactly do you think our traditional trust-based trading culture will fully align with the mathematical trust offered by blockchain?

Technical Summary and Analytical Implications