President of the Presidency Finance Office, Göksel Aşan, evaluated the latest developments in the Istanbul Finance Center (IFC), the first phase of which was opened recently.
Stating that the second stage of the IFC, whose first stage has been opened, is almost ready, Aşan said, “There are a few minor touch-ups that need to be done. Very little work remains, especially on the environmental road and the Central Bank building. We anticipate that the second stage will be opened in a few months. In fact, we will have opened all of them. There may be some deficiencies in its internal regulations. The Central Bank building, the areas we have reserved for renting, and a special project area will be opened,” he said.
Giving the information that the main elements such as shopping malls and dining places will be opened in 3-5 months, Aşan said, “Most of these places will be empty. The incoming company is doing the interior arrangements. It may take some time, but it will take 3-5 months for us to say ‘Come’.”
Emphasizing that IFC will already fulfill its classical function, Aşan said that financial technologies (fintech) and participation finance are two areas where they intend to use the advantage of the Center more.
All infrastructure in the field of financial technologies will be created
Pointing out that they see participation finance and financial technologies as an opportunity for Istanbul, Aşan made the following assessment:
“We have already done a lot of work in participation finance. Its law has not reached this period, but it will reach the next period, we have prepared the strategy document. The process is progressing quite well there. We also have a National Fintech Strategy Document from the Fintek side, we will announce it soon, our President will announce it. “We are establishing a Technology Base. We have completed the regulations and guides regarding there. We will have created all the infrastructure related to the ecosystem in the Fintech field within IFC, then we will leave it to the private sector. They will do whatever they do in the infrastructure.”
Noting that this technology base will operate as a technology development zone or technopark, Aşan said, “We exist, there is ASELSAN, there are universities in Ibn Haldun, Marmara, Istanbul, there is Informatics Valley. We have established such a structure, like a technopark structure. We want to bring ‘start-ups’ in and grow them. I have a dream: we will take ‘start-ups’, enlarge the successful ones and then place them in IFC. We are trying to establish a mechanism that creates its own environment from within. For example, I think that in 10 years, maybe 30 percent of IFC will be occupied by fintechs. The world is heading there too. Let’s pave the way for it, let’s grow it there, let what we grew there stay there. We want to create such an ecosystem,” he said. .
Coordinating committee for Fintek
Aşan also gave information about the National Fintech Strategy Document. Stating that there are many goals in the document, Aşan said that he attaches great importance to the goal of establishing a coordination committee, especially related to fintech. Ashan said:
“After this is announced, I hope we will progress rapidly on that side as well. There are many actors there, there is the Central Bank, there is the BRSA, we are there. I want a structure in which both the legal infrastructure and other infrastructures are built together in the coming period. I think we will progress much faster from there.”
Referring to the support to be provided to the companies that will take part in IFC, Aşan said, “We have already put some incentives on financial services export, transit trade and foreign capital in the law on this issue. It will be clear on the way whether there will be more or not. Dubai Financial Center “We have roughly everything in it,” he said.
Aşan also noted the following regarding the demand for IFC from the private sector:
“The place will fill up faster than we expected. I see the demands, IFM AŞ under our Wealth Fund is making leases. They have the real data, but we are constantly talking to them. It will fill up faster than we expected. Let me tell you that there is foreign interest, it will increase even more.”
