PCM MPE 2017 Special

Thought Leaders Corner
Center (BKM) was established in 1990 with the partnership
of 13 public and private Turkish banks with the purpose of
providing solutions to common problems and developing the
rules and standards of credit and debit cards in Turkey, within
the card payment system. They developed BKM Express,
a national digital wallet, which is one of the milestones in
Turkish e-commerce history. It has been used by 2 million
unique cardholders from 17 banks.
We also recently integrated our system with ComPay, which
works similarly to PayByLink and allows direct money transfer
from banks for more than 5,5 million consumers. Direct Debit
plays a critical role in the market for consumers with security
& trust issues who do not want to use their credit card.
For our merchants we are trying to expand the e-commerce
ecosystem and leverage the market. That’s why we are seeking
solutions to enable online payment options for unbanked &
underbanked consumers. Even as credit card usage is high
it shouldn’t be forgotten that almost 50% of the Turkish
population does not have access to banking services.
Recently we made a deal with UPT (universal payment transfer
company) and integrated our payment infrastructure with post
offices’ from all around Turkey to reach 25 million unbanked
adults. We are aware of our responsibilities and are working
to attract new users to the ecosystem and grow the payment
system industry.
Given everything that has happened in Turkey, what in the
way of innovation and business opportunity can global
merchants expect from your market?
Turkey is the 18th largest economy in the world and 6th largest
economy compared with the EU. Main assets include a young,
dynamic population, a large domestic market, and a strategic
location, combined with strong infrastructure and much
improved public services.
Social & technological factors show us that the country has
big potential when it comes to adaption of new technologies &
online / social media usage which will lead to an e-commerce
boom in the near future.
• 48.6 million broadband internet subscribers in 2015, up
from 0.1 million in 2002 (ICTA, TurkStat)
• 73.6 million mobile phone subscribers in 2015, up from
23 million in 2002 (TurkStat)
• 58 million credit card users in 2015, up from 16 million in
2002 (The Interbank Card Center of Turkey)
• 181 million airline passengers in 2015, up from 33 million
in 2002 (TurkStat)
• 35.6 million international tourist arrivals in 2015, up from
13 million in 2002 (TurkStat)
And recently the Turkish government introduced a new law
that offers citizenship for foreigners who invest, acquire real
estate, or place deposit in banks.
And news is coming in from important companies worldwide
like Bank of China – The world’s 7th largest & China’s 3rd
Y. Emre Güzer
Country Director - PayU Turkey
Y. Emre Güzer started his professional career at
Pamukbank in 2001. He was Electronic Commerce
Products Director at Garanti Payment Systems,
where he played active roles in the establishment
of many payment and verification systems that are
used throughout Turkey. He has published research
articles in various academic resources that focus on
the online world and the ecommerce sector. As of
2011, Y. Emre Güzer was appointed as the Country
Director of PayU Turkey.
largest.They set up deposit banking in Turkey, bringing in
required capital. The country’s Banking Regulation and
Supervision Agency (BDDK) said BOC had brought the “required
capital” and would begin operating shortly. And recently U.S.-
based multinational alternative investment company National
Standard Finance (NSF) made an announcement that they will
connect Turkey with a $2 trillion funding network that would
bring direct foreign investment and help boost the economy.
What do you see as the most important factors for global
merchants to be aware of when entering your market?
Credit card and installment are the keys to enter the Turkish
market. I can say that international merchants are lucky
because credit card transaction is a universal payment method
and makes payment processes easier for businesses. But there
is an additional hussle if they’re processing from abroad
because they won’t able to offer an installment option.
Without having a Turkish entity, international merchants can
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