Banking watchdog puts new limits on FX swaps

Turkish banks’ foreign currency swap transactions cannot pass over 25 percent of their equities, Turkey’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) announced on Tuesday.

"Total notional principle amount of banks' currency swaps and other similar products (spot forward FX transactions) with foreign counterparties where at the initial date local banks pay Turkish lira and receive FX should not exceed 25 percent of the bank’s regulatory capital," the agency said.

"In this regard, unless current excess is eliminated, no further transactions of these types could be executed and maturing transaction should not be renewed," it added.

On Monday, the agency had put a limit to these transactions at 50 percent of the bank’s equities.