Turkish banks boost foreign borrowing by 60%, securing over $20B

The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) stated that Türkiye’s short-term external debt stock increased by 0.1% as of the end of September 2024 compared to the end of 2023, reaching $176.4 billion.

According to the report, Turkish banks increased the amount of loans from abroad by 60.8%, borrowing $20.3 billion.

According to CBRT data, the short-term debt of the public sector, consisting entirely of public banks, rose significantly by 14.8% to $39.6 billion. Meanwhile, the private sector’s short-term external debt climbed by 3.3% to $98.4 billion.

• The short-term external debt stock originating from banks rose by 15.5% to $79 billion compared to the end of 2023, while the short-term debt stock of other sectors declined by 3.9% to $59 billion.
• Deposits held by non-resident foreign entities, excluding banks, decreased by 1.2% to $19.8 billion. Deposits held by foreign banks also fell by 4.4%, amounting to $19.8 billion.
• Non-resident deposits in Turkish lira increased significantly by 26.8%, reaching $19.2 billion.

Private sector leads in external debts

The foreign currency composition of Türkiye’s short-term external debt stock was reported as 47.3% in U.S. dollars, 22.4% in euros, 14.8% in Turkish lira and 15.5% in other currencies.

In terms of the debtor breakdown, the total stock was shared as 23.7% by the public sector, 16.5% by the central bank, and 59.8% by the private sector.

Based on remaining maturity—regardless of the original maturity—short-term external debt stock with a maturity of one year or less stood at $233.1 billion. Of this amount, $21.4 billion consisted of debt owed by Türkiye-based banks and private sector entities to their overseas branches and subsidiaries.