Turkiye's removal from FATF 'gray list' to boost foreign investment

The country has made ‘significant progress’ in improving its regime of anti-money laundering and combating terror financing, the Paris-based crime watchdog said in a statement after its recent plenary meeting in Singapore.

Minister of treasury and finance Mehmet Simsek hailed the decision with the post “We succeeded," on the social media platform X.

Turkish government officials and the country’s business community welcomed the decision, according to domestic media reports.

Credit rating agency Moody's Ratings also said it would contribute to the country’s reputation globally and improve its relationships with European and US institutions.

Legal regulations stopped many international investment funds to invest in countries included in the FATF gray list, said Turkiye Payments and Electronic Money Institutions Association (TODEB) president Ufuk Bilgetekin.

An increase in company mergers and acquisitions is also expected in future following this decision, he said.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to Turkiye were worth $10.6 billion last year, while the figure was $1.5 billion in the first quarter this year, slightly below the overall quarterly average in the recent period.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)