The Turks rushed to buy virtual currencies when the local currency fell sharply in value

The Turkish lira has become so volatile that people in the country have sold their local currency in favor of a riskier asset: cryptocurrencies.

While the lira strongly against. fell USD in Q4 / 2021 digital currency transactions in Lira jumped to an average of 1.8 Billion USD/ Tag, according to the blockchain analysis company Chainalysis.

The Turks are extremely passionate about the stablecoin (stablecoin) tether virtual currency that is anchored U.S. dollar.

This fall, the lira became the most widely used fiat currency for tether transactions, according to the company CryptoCompare, outperforming both the USD and the euro.

The people of this country are currently trying to overcome the economic crisis by withholding money U.S. dollar, Euros or gold. The rise of cryptocurrencies in recent years has created a new store of value, albeit with much greater volatility. As of September 2021, the lira has opposed 40%. lost U.S. dollar.

In Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, advertisements for the exchange of cryptocurrencies appear on the city’s trains, billboards and airports. Bitcoin shops have sprung up in the Grand Bazaar, which is located in alleys near vendors who sell forex and gold.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shook the Turkish financial system in autumn 2021 and, despite the sharp rise in inflation, repeatedly demanded a rate cut. The lira has stabilized somewhat in recent weeks after the government launched an aid package. However, the concerns of the Turks remain.

“Irrational interest rate policy, falling confidence in inflation statistics and political decisions make cryptocurrencies a safe haven, even though cryptocurrencies are riskier and more volatile. Stronger,” said Kağan Şenay, a 27-year-old trader in Bursa. Şenay said he started trading bitcoin in 2017 for additional income. But he increasingly sees this as a way of protecting his lira income from inflation.