Huobi Lira Onramp to Enable Crypto Trading for Turkish Users

Singapore-based crypto exchange Huobi will launch a fiat gateway for the Turkish lira in late 2019.

Huobi’s fiat onramp for lira will be the first fiat gateway launched by a global exchange, Huobi Global claimed during the opening event at the Eurasia Blockchain Summit on Oct. 18.

During the inaugural event hosted by Huobi Global, the company also revealed more information about its expansion into Turkey. Specifically, Huobi unveiled the successful establishment of a local team, localized language option, mobile application, exclusive trading fees as well as a detailed strategy for Huobi Turkey.

By launching the gateway, Huobi will enable Turkish users to deposit fiat currency via wire transfer to exchange for major stablecoin Tether (UDST), which can then be used to trade crypto-to-crypto on Huobi Global.

According to the press release, Huobi users from Turkey will be trading with a 50% discount on transaction fees, which they can further decrease by holding Huobi’s native token Huobi Token (HT). The exchange will also feature a discount fee of 0.0078% on spot and margin trades for Turkish professional traders within the All Star VIP Program, the firm said.

Lira onramp is one part of Huobi’s expansion into Turkey

The Huobi Turkey keynote follows the exchange’s initial announcement of expanding into the Turkish market in June 2019. At the time, Huobi Global CEO Livio Weng stated that the exchange will be “moving aggressively” over the next 12 months, noting that the country has a “very important and promising prospective market.”

Huobi’s expansion is driven by the increased popularity of cryptocurrencies in the country, where 20% of the population holds some form of crypto, which is the “highest per capita rate of cryptocurrency ownership of all nations surveyed,” the firm said.

Mohit Davar, regional president of Huobi Group, emphasized at the event that Huobi’s Turkish arm will be operating in compliance with local regulations, as reported by a Cointelegraph correspondent who visited the event. Davar said:

"For Huobi, what's important is to go into a market in a compliant way. [...] We talk to the stakeholders to make sure we are working closely with them in a controlled fashion. That's why we take our time preparing.”

In mid-September, the Turkish government announced plans to form a national blockchain infrastructure to utilize distributed ledger technology in its public administration

The piece was contributed by Cointelegraph Turkey correspondent Erhan Kahraman.