Tim Dhillon
Chairman
Guides long-term global syndicate governance, sovereign regulatory alignments, and strategic expansion across the DLC network.
LinkedInThe Turkish Lira, from your own bank.
Because of the digital ecosystem, local currencies can now be open to everyone. You should not need a middle currency or a middle service provider to reach the lira when your own bank can offer it directly. Visitors, students and workers in Türkiye already deal in lira in cash form. DLC lets their native bank provide that same service, digitally.
Digital TRY Program Limited is the country program manager for the Turkish Lira under DLC Europe Limited, within the Digital Local Currency (DLC) program.
Four groups already pay to reach the lira.
Each year millions of people move through Türkiye using physical cash, foreign card networks or offshore apps. None of that lands on a local ledger. Pick a group to see the difference.
Estimated friction on the sample amount
Through the DLC framework
Outcome
Estimated informal leakage
Main corridors
Indicative saving on
Illustrative figures for a sample amount in US dollars. They are estimates for discussion, not quotes.
BUY, KEEP, SPEND and ACCEPT.
A closed loop that keeps every transaction inside the formal banking network. Licensed banks sit on both ends and perform each step under their own permissions.
BUY
Reach the currency directly
A person buys Turkish Lira, or a foreign currency from a Turkish bank, digitally through their own bank, with no cash shipping. Institutional pricing replaces cash-bureau margins.
Performed by the licensed bank in the origination country
KEEP
A remote home for the account
Value is kept onshore in an account the person reaches from their own banking app, using a Virtual IBAN (VIBAN) for the Turkish side.
Held by a licensed bank or e-money institution
SPEND
Use it where it is needed
Lira value reaches merchants, universities and suppliers through domestic schemes such as FAST and TR QR, instead of through cash.
Performed by the licensed bank on the destination side
ACCEPT
The inbound mirror of SPEND
Local acceptance, including schemes such as TROY, lets holders from abroad pay in Türkiye. Local merchants can also invoice globally and settle in either direction.
Performed by the licensed acquirer or settlement bank
The two banks agree an Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) arrangement directly with each other. Digital TRY Program Limited is not in the flow of funds.
Five ways it strengthens the lira.
When cross-border flows move from cash and offshore channels onto domestic ledgers, they can turn into productive domestic capital.
FX reserve accretion
Inbound conversions place foreign currency in Turkish supplier books, which supports the Central Bank's net FX reserves.
On the CBRT ledgerDeposit lirization
Foreign funds settle as lira deposits, helping commercial banks meet their macroprudential ratios.
Deposit expansionShadow displacement
A lower-friction digital route competes with off-books cash routing, so less volume leaves the formal system.
Cashless progressTax visibility
Visitor spending and SME import settlements leave an automatic, taxable audit trail instead of disappearing into cash.
VAT captureNetwork depth
Higher transaction volume on FAST and TROY scales Türkiye's payment independence.
National railsLess trapped capital. No exchange-rate gap.
Moving from capital-heavy correspondent banking to Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) between licensed banks.
Correspondent banking today
- Trapped capitalLarge local liquidity reserves sit idle to settle cross-currency corridors.
- Exchange-rate exposureSettlement balances swing with the market and need costly hedging.
- Opaque shadow leaksSlow processing pushes users toward paper cash, which hides activity from regulators.
The DLC framework
- Neutral reservesCustody and liquidity stay with the licensed banks, in stable anchor currencies such as USD and EUR, until settlement.
- T+1 exact-amount settlementConversion happens on the exact transaction value in the settlement window, which removes exchange-rate risk.
- Reclaimed on-ledger volumeCash markets come back onto regulated domestic banking channels.
Direct links to the world's financial hubs.
The DLC program connects Turkish banks with member banks in the United States, Canada, China, India, Europe and the United Kingdom, so each side can serve its own customers in the other's currency.
Regulators gain an automatic view of capital movements. Transactions move away from untracked intermediaries and leave a transparent record of inbound and outbound flows.
US and CanadaBilateral bank integration
China and IndiaSME invoicing portals
Example flows between member banks
SME import invoice settlementChina
Student maintenance paymentUnited Kingdom
Visitor lira purchase before travelEurope
Illustrative. Settled between licensed banks over domestic schemes such as FAST.
Who does what in Türkiye.
Digital TRY Program Limited manages the program for the Turkish Lira. It does not run payments. The domestic joint venture and the licensed banks do the operating.
Digital Local Currency LimitedUK parent company
Holds the group's know-how, IP and technology, and sets group governance.
DLC Europe LimitedRegional program manager
Manages the DLC program across Europe and controls its country program managers.
Digital TRY Program LimitedCountry program manager, Turkish Lira
Manages the program for the Turkish Lira under DLC Europe Limited. A holding, IP and governance company with no operations of its own.
Domestic joint ventureWith a qualified Turkish partner
The only entity in the structure that operates in Türkiye and deals with banks, merchants, clients and regulators.
Licensed banks and regulated institutionsOn both ends of every transaction
They hold the licences, custody the funds and settle between themselves under their own permissions.
No operations
No group entity has its own operations, clients or contracts with outside parties.
No customer funds
No group entity holds, receives, moves or settles customer or third-party funds. Group money flows are intercompany only.
No licence needed
No group entity carries on an activity that requires a financial-services licence.
Compliance built in from the start.
Compliance becomes a security asset rather than an operating burden, and helps host-country regulators manage liquidity risk. Participating banks apply these controls under their own obligations.
Rich data integrity
Every inbound and outbound transfer maps to ISO 20022 data, giving full clarity on the purpose of payment for state auditing.
Dual-jurisdiction alignment
Structured to align with global anti-money laundering (AML) standards and local MASAK requirements at the same time.
Real-time risk screening
Continuous screening against international sanctions lists (OFAC, UN, EU) stops high-risk funds before they reach domestic balance sheets.
Designed around the direction of the Central Bank's cashless-payments agenda. Reference frameworks: CBRT, BKM, MASAK, TÖDEB and Ministry of Finance.
Executive leadership.
Guided by leaders in central bank policy, clearing structures and regulatory technology.
Mohsen Kachooee
CEO, Co-Founder and Board Member
Architect of the DLC financial regulatory technology structure and international banking alliance development.
LinkedIn
Osama Muein
Board Member and Chief Investment Officer
Manages platform liquidity buffers and global capital corridor deployment.
LinkedInBring the lira to your customers' own bank.
For banks, regulators and institutions that want to explore the program for the Turkish Lira.