Page 40 - RBI FIntech Atlas 2018

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Spotlight Turkey
The Turkish ntech scene has become increasingly attractive to both local and international investors in recent years. These investors are aware of the signi cant growth potential of the ntech companies serving Turkey’s strong nancial sector and of the fact that returns are potentially much higher than those offered by saturated markets in the US and Europe. Foreign VCs investing in the Turkish ICT sector include Earlybird and Speedinvest.
One hurdle faced by ntechs in Turkey is that the relative infancy of the sector compared with more developed economies means that regulation is also embryonic. The key regulatory milestone to date was the introduction of the “Law on Payment and Security Settlement Systems, Payment Services and Electronic Money Institutions” in 2013. The Turkish Central Bank has also demonstrated its proactive approach to ntechs by launching its Fintech Task Force.
Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey
The rst ntech hub was established via a partnership between Bosphorus University and the Istanbul Stock Exchange. Another key step was the launch of Finberg, an investment and ntech venture, by Fibabanka and Ozyegin University in April 2018. The total of €493K invested by the platform to date includes investments in Garaj Sepeti and Bizim Hesap. All these initiatives are expected to support the ntech ecosystem and ensure ef cient coordination with regulatory bodies as ntechs prosper in step with the digital transformation of the nancial sector.
2018 saw a number of signi cant transactions. The Sancak Family, which is well-known in Turkey as an investor in a wide range of sectors, acquired a 54% share of Cardtek, the provider of end-to-end payment solutions, for an undisclosed sum. And Iyzico, another well-known Turkish player in the payment solutions market, received funding from a series of international investors including Vostok Emerging Finance, IFC and Amadeus Capital as well as the Turkey-based early-stage VC rm 212 Capital Partners.