Hurriyet English
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 08, 2008 16:08
Iran has given Turkey the green light to become the first foreign country to open bank branches in the country, after Turkish State Minister Kursad Tuzmen met with Iranian Foreign Minister during his visit to Iran, Hurriyet daily reported on Wednesday.
"Our bilateral trade volume with Iran has reached to $8 billion a year, and these sorts of serious sums of money can’t be carried in bags," said Tuzmen, stressing that Turkish bank branches are needed for transactions between the two countries.
"We are requesting assistance from Iran to help with the establishment of Turkish bank branches," said Tuzmen, currently in the Iranian capital to hold a series of talks.
The trade volume between Turkey and Iran has increased to $8 billion compared to $2 billion a year in 2002, and expected to be $20 billion a year by 2011. Turkey mainly imports oil and gas from Iran. Currently, the state-run Turkish Land Bank (Ziraat Bankasi) has one representative in Iran.
Iranian officials confirmed it would assist banks planning to open branches in the country. "This is the first time our door is open to foreign banks." officials said.
