Pact to smooth cross-border trade
To connect payment and messaging systems
The central banks of the UAE and Turkey have signed a bilateral currency-swap agreement, aiming to boost trade and drive economic growth.
The pact is worth AED18 billion, or 198 billion lira ($4.9 billion), Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported, citing a statement from the Turkish central bank.
The swap deal will improve financial cooperation between the two countries by providing local-currency liquidity to markets and facilitate the efficient settlement of cross-border transactions, the statement said.
Both central banks also signed agreements to expand the use of local currencies in cross-border trade and to connect their payment and messaging systems.
The arrangement includes the potential integration of the UAE’s instant payment platform (Aani) with Turkey’s Fast system, enabling better interoperability, easier cross-border payments and extensive use of domestic payment cards, the statement added.
“The agreements open up new opportunities to facilitate trade and investment relations between the two countries,” Turkish central bank governor Fatih Karahan said.
Further reading:
Andalou reported in July that Turkey’s exports to the UAE rose 65 percent year on year in the first half of 2025, thanks to an easing of trade procedures under the two countries’ comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa).
The UAE and Turkey signed the Cepa in March 2023, expecting non-oil bilateral trade to reach $40 billion within the next five years.