Getting Out of Lira

[JohnF]

I asked someone who is very knowledgeable about what would the implications be if a currency were to collapse I was told if that were to happen then "said" country would not be effected as that particular country would still continue to use their currency and hence had peace of mind for a while with it all going on.

Not that knowledgeable I think.  Yes, it would continue to use its currency but in somewhat larger amounts for everyday items.  As a country's currency decreases in value, imports of essential goods such as oil, manufactured items etc will all increase, sometimes at an alarming rate. 

For a country like Turkey who has to import oil and gas, the effects of the weakened lira and and the warring factions within the government/judiciary etc are already being seen due to the weak TL/USD rate.

Most expats though will only start howling when the Efes goes up...

JF

[Rimms]

 JF, I normally respect your posts and regard them as well informed, however I thought your last one was less than poor.

[Scunner]

In fairness George, I don't think you are part of the "most expats" John meant  

[Rimms]

Fair enough

[suehugh]

As a matter of interest, Finans bank informed us that the max amount in a bank account which the government guaranteed compensation was 30'000tl.
This is in the event of a bank collapse.
It compares to 85k in the UK

[Scunner]

I recall the early days of SGK for expats, and I'm sure others will also remember the amount of panic that finding £80 a month for this compulsory health insurance caused. All over Facebook people were protesting that it was something they simply couldn't find - this would be the straw that broke the camel's back and bring their time in Turkey to an end.

I said then, how precarious an existence it must be, to be living and getting older in a foreign land and be twenty quid a week away from having to leave for good. Well, SGK has changed a lot and often since then, but I assume these people's financial tightrope remains. It may not be compulsory SGK payments, but life costing £20 a week more looks more than likely once everything hits.

I think we'll see quite a reduction in Brits living out in Turkey - which in itself is another loss of revenue/foreign income for the country. Not huge, but significant - especially when everything else is stifled.

[Scunner]

As a matter of interest, Finans bank informed us that the max amount in a bank account which the government guaranteed compensation was 30'000tl.
This is in the event of a bank collapse.
It compares to 85k in the UK

Yes and firstly 30,000 TL is becoming less and less daily, and secondly this is as you say, if the bank goes bust. That must be fairly unlikely for quite a few of them, but if 30,000 (which was £12,000 when it was 2.5/£ but a mere £8,000 today) continues to weaken, you aren't talking about banks going bust, it's about how much your liras are worth when you finally whip them out.

I'm sounding very doom and gloom and don't mean to - it's horrible seeing things sliding while RTE stands letting it happen.

[kayakebab]

Gulsah at Finansbank told me it's 100,00 tl.
Can you tell me who said 30,00 as that's  a real worry.
Just googled and this article seems to back up what she told me
http://www.fethiyetimes.com/expat-zone/money/7402-turkish-bank-accounts-how-secure-are-your-savings-and-deposits.html

[Scunner]

Oops it was suehugh's fault  

Under the SDIF protection it is 100k TL per person (per bank) - possibly Finansbank meant £30,000 (which it used to be).

SDIF: http://www.tmsf.org.tr/Resource/documents/guvence_mevduat_en.pdf

[JohnF]

JF, I normally respect your posts and regard them as well informed, however I thought your last one was less than poor.

Why?  If you're referring to my final comment I stand by it.  I will echo what Keith said, I didn't consider you personally (or many others on here) to fall into that category - but you're a minority, believe me.

Funnily enough, the CBF Minister of Finance just posted this on another thread:

"I toured around a few Turkish forums to see what people were saying about the current crisis. There is an astonishing amount of economic and financial illiteracy out. Many people seem genuinely to believe that the Turkish economy is almost entirely dependant on a tiny strip of land within one mile of the Aegean or Mediterranean coasts. A few of them suffer the delusion that the government relies on the money brought into the country by expats. One character proclaimed the theory that the Turkish government lowers the value of the lira in the Spring in order to attract more tourists into country and raises it again in the Autumn ("stands to reason" he said). And no-one on the forum corrected him on this - mind you he is a moderator."

Many of these "Mugla/Aydin centric" individuals use the price of Efes as their economic barometer and really do believe the "Turks" would miss their money if they left.



JF