Turkey taking crypto transaction steps to hinder laundering, Simsek says

ISTANBUL (Reuters) -Turkey is taking steps to prevent the laundering of criminal proceeds from illegal betting and fraud through cryptocurrency transactions, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Tuesday.

On his X account, he reposted an article by state-owned Anadolu news agency saying Turkey was preparing to introduce transfer limits and mandatory waiting periods for withdrawals on crypto assets.

It said the new steps will include waiting periods of 48 to 72 hours for crypto withdrawals where the travel rule - requiring the verification of information on the sender and recipient of a transaction - is not applied.

"We are taking new steps to prevent the laundering of criminal proceeds obtained from illegal betting and fraud through cryptocurrency transactions," Simsek said.

"Administrative, legal, and financial sanctions will be imposed on non-compliant platforms," he added.

The daily limit on the transfer of stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a constant value, will be capped at $3,000, with a monthly limit of $50,000, Anadolu said.

The travel rule is a set of guidelines designed to prevent money laundering, that mandates virtual asset service providers to obtain and disclose precise details pertaining to the sender and recipient of a virtual asset transfer.

(Reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Daren Butler)

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