Turkey has formally signalled its ambition to join the European Union’s payments infrastructure, with Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek confirming that Ankara has sent a letter of intent to join the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).
Simsek made the announcement on Thursday at a press conference following the Turkey-EU high-level economic dialogue meeting in Istanbul.
Turkey and the EU have been in talks over accession to SEPA, the 41-country framework that makes cross-border euro-currency payments cheaper, faster and more secure.
Letter of Intent: What It Means
Joining SEPA would allow Turkish banks and businesses to send and receive euro payments under the same rules, timelines and cost structures as institutions inside the bloc, removing a longstanding friction point for Turkish exporters and importers trading with European partners. The EU is Turkey’s largest trading partner, and euro flows dominate the country’s external trade settlement.
The letter of intent marks the first formal step in the accession process. SEPA membership has previously been extended to non-EU countries, with the framework covering EEA members, the UK, Switzerland and, more recently, Western Balkan economies as part of the EU’s push to deepen financial integration with its neighbourhood.
For Turkey’s corporate and banking sector, SEPA access would cut settlement costs and processing times on euro transactions, and align Turkish payment institutions more closely with EU payments regulation.
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