How to become a licensed Payment Service Provider (PSP) in Turkey?

Operating License for PSPs in Turkey

Provision of payment services within the borders of Turkey is subject to an operating license which shall be obtained from Banking Regulation Supervision Agency (BRSA). Therefore; if you are intending to operate in the field of payment services, you can only do so with a permission from BRSA. The main piece of legislation governing the PSPs  was introduced back in June 2015. It is called Law on Payment and Security Settlement Systems, Payment Services and Electronic Money Institutions Nr. 6493. This Law laid down the criteria for PSPs in order to get an operating license before BRSA.

The general conditions are stated below:

The PSP is subject to the following conditions of eligibility:

1. The PSP must be established as joint stock company under the Turkish Commercial Code.
2. Shareholders owning ten percent or more of the capital and holding control are required to meet the bank founder qualifications laid down in the Banking Law Nr. 5411.
3. Its shares should be issued against cash and to name.
4. The paid capital should not be less than 2 million Turkish Liras.
5. The PSP should have the required management structure, adequate personnel and technical equipments which is required for performing the transactions under the scope of Law Nr. 6493 and departments handling complaints and objections.
6. The PSP should take precautions required for the continuity of the operations to be conducted under the scope of Law Nr. 6493 and for preservation of security and confidentiality of the funds and information related to the payment service users.
7. It is required for the PSP to have transparent and open partnership structure and organizational chart that will not constitute an obstacle for the efficient supervision of the BRSA.

Evaluation process of an application for operating license

The license application under the scope of Law submitted to BRSA will be reviewed and concluded by its Board within a period of six-months after the date of submission. Nevertheless, the submission date is taken as the last date in which all information and documents related to the application are fully submitted. As a result;

If the decision is affirmative:

The license shall be granted by BRSA to an applicant provided that requirements, qualifications and competencies required under the scope of Law Nr. 6493 and its secondary legislation are met, the information and documents to be required by the Agency are submitted and the application is regarded as affirmative by the Board. Furthermore; the PSP who is granted an operating license must notify the BRSA within 10 days from the commencement of operations.

If the decision is negative:

On the other hand, in case the decision is negative, the applicant must be informed of the decision with the reasons by BRSA. However; the decision of BRSA can be appealed before the Administrative Courts of Turkey.