Cash & Payment Trends from Turkish Perspective

Turkey has a high rate of inflation and household demand for cash has been increasing steadily over the past ten years. The impact of the pandemic was, initially, a decrease in demand because of the shutdowns but, after vaccinations were introduced, demand recovered very quickly. Compared with the 2020 Q1, cash withdrawals from branches increased 23%. Putting aside the shutdown period, it can be concluded that the pandemic has had almost no effect on cash demand. Indeed, consumers appear to demand more cash than ever.

Pace of digitalization during the pandemic

The pace of the digitalization during 2020 increased more than the average because of the pandemic. Banks implemented new digital features or enhanced their digital capabilities as a response to COVID. Customers turned to online channels more than ever, with the value of financial transactions made on the internet increasing 33% and the use of mobile banking increasing by 103% between 2019 and 2020.