Compliance Quarterly Türkiye

Global

EU Commission's updated list on high-risk countries for anti-money laundering is published in Official Journal of the EU (OJ)

The European Commission has adopted an updated Delegated Regulation to reflect the latest changes from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), revising the EU’s list of high-risk third countries with strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regimes.

Read the full publication, "Commission updates list of high-risk countries presenting strategic deficiencies in their national AML/CFT regimes."

Global enforcement: Shifting sands and stricter accountability

The international investigations and enforcement landscape is undergoing rapid transformation driven by geopolitical shifts and new legislation. Authorities are ramping up activity, with a focus on corporate cooperation, sanctions violations and the effectiveness of compliance policies following the introduction of key offenses like the UK’s failure to prevent fraud.

Read the full publication, "Horizon Scanning: Investigations and Enforcement."

Türkiye

New move by MASAK regarding unregistered transactions: Draft Communiqué No. 30

In order to strengthen compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)’s standards, or to detect proceeds of crime and prevent their transfer abroad and money laundering and to combat the informal economy, the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) has prepared the Draft General Communiqué No. 30 (Draft Communiqué) regarding the monitoring of EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer), remittance and cash transactions. The Draft Communiqué was opened to the comments and suggestions until August 18, 2025. The Draft General Communiqué is not only a regulation but it is also a strategic document that initiates the transformation of operational compliance capacity.

The Draft Communiqué foresees that customers transacting with financial institutions having liability in electronic transfers and cash transactions, or persons authorized to act on behalf of customers, declare the nature of the transaction within the transaction limits determined in the draft. They should do so during money transfers or cash transactions, and they are also expected to record, examine and question the nature of the transactions in terms of the risks of money laundering, taking into account FATF principles and guidelines. This draft is thus a very advanced step in terms of combating informal economic activities. In this context, financial institutions are required to monitor customers’ transactions that do not have a reasonable purpose and are inconsistent with the customer profile. This draft establishes an important control mechanism for preventing money laundering and combating the informal economy by requiring the real or legal persons performing the transaction to declare the nature of the transaction in critical transaction categories, such as cash transactions and electronic money transfers.

Please read our full article, "New Move by MASAK Regarding Unregistered Transactions: Draft Communiqué No. 30" for detailed information about the provisions.

Amendment to the Regulation on Compliance Programs: New obligations and transitional provisions

The Ministry of Treasury and Finance (Ministry) has published the “Regulation Amending the Regulation on Compliance Programs Regarding Obligations for the Prevention of Laundering Proceeds of Crime and Financing of Terrorism” in the Official Gazette No. 32994 dated 22 August 2025. The amendments introduce significant changes in areas such as the scope of obliged parties, appointment conditions for compliance officers, notification obligations and transitional arrangements. Most provisions entered into force upon publication, while certain provisions will take effect on 25 December 2025.

For the first time, dealers conducting games of chance and betting exclusively through electronic channels, without physical premises or face-to-face customer interaction, are included within the scope.

Persons who, within two years prior to the date of appointment, conducted inspections or compliance audits for an obliged entity may no longer be appointed as compliance officer or deputy at the same entity.

In addition to cases where a compliance officer is later found to lack required qualifications, the dismissal of a compliance officer must now also be reported to the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), together with reasons.

Please read our full article, "Amendment to the Regulation on Compliance Programs: New Obligations and Transitional Provisions" for detailed information about the provisions.

Strict oversight on customer due diligence and withdrawal transactions for crypto asset service providers

With the new regulation published by MASAK, stricter measures will be applied to crypto asset service providers. The General Communiqué No. 29 was published in the Official Gazette on June 28, 2025 and has entered into force.

Under the Communiqué, crypto asset service providers are now subject to more detailed identification and data collection obligations when establishing a business relationship with customers. In particular, for high-risk transactions, documents regarding the source of funds and the purpose of the transaction must be regularly obtained. In addition, the transfer of a customer’s crypto assets to another platform may only take place at least forty-eight hours after the transaction, and this period is extended to seventy-two hours for initial withdrawal transactions.

The Communiqué also introduces daily and monthly limits on transactions involving stable-value crypto assets, which are typically pegged to a currency and conducted via platforms. Transfers of such assets to other platforms are restricted to a maximum of US$3,000 per day and US$50,000 per month. Where specific risk measures are applied, these limits may be doubled. Furthermore, for each crypto transfer, it is mandatory to obtain a transaction description of at least twenty characters from the user.

Certain categories of actors, such as liquidity providers, market makers and arbitrage investors, may be exempt from these restrictions under specific conditions. However, such exemption requires separate approval by the board of directors for each individual customer and remains subject to ongoing monitoring obligations. Entities responsible for the custody of crypto assets are also bound by the same restrictions. The restrictions, however, do not apply to transfers between platforms and custody institutions operating under capital markets legislation.

Finally, the Communiqué makes clear that non-compliance may result in the imposition of legal sanctions stipulated under the applicable Law.

Please read our full article, "Strict Oversight on Customer Due Diligence and Withdrawal Transactions: MASAK Communiqué Now in Force."

Mandatory examination and licensing requirements imposed on employees serving as compliance officers

The Financial Crimes Investigation Board’s Communiqué No. 30 (Communiqué) regulates the procedures and principles concerning the examination, professional training, licensing processes and registry requirements applicable to individuals who will be authorized to serve as compliance officers or assistant compliance officers at the subject entities.

The authorization examination shall be conducted either directly by MASAK or by institutions and organizations designated by MASAK. In order to be eligible to sit for the examination, candidates must be citizens of the Republic of Turkey, not be deprived of public rights, not have been convicted of the offenses enumerated in the Communiqué and have graduated from a higher education institution that provides at least a four-year program in Turkey, or from a foreign institution of higher education whose equivalency is recognized by the Council of Higher Education.

Candidates who successfully complete the authorization examination shall, following the announcement of the examination results, submit their applications for the Compliance Officer License through the application system available on the official website of MASAK. The Compliance Officer License shall be granted to candidates who meet the aforementioned requirements. Individuals to whom such license is issued shall be authorized to serve as compliance officers or assistant compliance officers.

The Compliance Officer License will be recorded in the registry, and its validity period will commence as of the date of the examination. Holders of the Compliance Officer License are obliged to participate in the license renewal training program every three years as determined by MASAK and to submit, in electronic form to MASAK, the documentation evidencing their continued fulfillment of the conditions required for the issuance of the Compliance Officer License. Failure to complete the renewal training within the prescribed period, or failure to provide the MASAK with the documentation evidencing compliance with the licensing requirements, will result in the suspension of the license, which will also be duly recorded in the registry.

You can read our full article, "Mandatory Examination and Licensing Requirements Imposed on Employees Serving as Compliance Officers" for more information about the provisions.

The Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) has published a “Guideline on Reporting Suspicious Transactions for Lawyers”

MASAK has published, for the first time, suspicious transaction guides for certain obligated parties and has updated some of the existing guides.

In addition to many professional groups such as electronic commerce intermediary service providers, insurance and reinsurance brokers and notaries; lawyers have also been designated as obligated parties. The newly-published guides include examples of suspicious transactions specific to the respective obligated parties. In the updated guides, the number of suspicious transaction examples for these obligated parties has been expanded.

As of June 16, 2025, notifications by obligated parties must be made electronically through the MASAK Online 2.0 system, in accordance with the procedures and principles set out in the newly published or updated guides, except in cases of necessity.

Obligated parties are required to submit their suspicious transaction reports to MASAK in line with the new guides and updates that entered into force on June 16, 2025, and in compliance with the specified procedures and principles.