Turkey’s central bank banned the use of cryptocurrencies and crypto assets to purchase goods and services, citing “irreparable” possible damages and significant risks in such transactions.
In legislation published in the Official Gazette overnight, the Central Bank of Turkey said cryptocurrencies and other such digital assets based on distributed ledger technology could not be used, directly or indirectly, as an instrument of payment.
“Payment service providers will not be able to develop business models in a way that crypto assets are used directly or indirectly in the provision of payment services and electronic money issuance, and will not be able to provide any services related to such business models,” the bank said.
Payment service providers will not be able to develop business models in a way that crypto assets are used directly or indirectly in the provision of payment services
A growing boom in Turkey’s crypto market had gained further pace recently, with investors hoping to both gain from Bitcoin’s rally and shelter against inflation.
A weaker Turkish lira and inflation pressures also have driven up demand for the cryptocurrency.
In a statement explaining the reason behind the ban, the bank said these assets were “neither subject to any regulation and supervision mechanisms nor a central regulatory authority”, among other security risks.
“It is considered that their use in payments may cause non-recoverable losses for the parties to the transactions due to the above-listed factors and they include elements that may undermine the confidence in methods and instruments used currently in payments,” the central bank said in a statement.
Last week, Turkish authorities demanded user information from trading platforms.
Turkey’s annual inflation climbed above 16 per cent in March.
The legislation goes into effect on April 30.
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
TRAP
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