Turkish crypto exchanges have seen a sharp rise in trading activity after the Turkish Lira (TRY) plunged to a record low. The drop came following the arrest of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s political rival, Ekrem İmamoğlu.
BtcTurk, one of Turkey’s largest exchanges, recorded a 32% increase in 24-hour trading volume. Paribu saw a 23% rise, while Binance TR, the Turkish branch of Binance, experienced a 24% surge. The BTC/TRY trading pair also hit its highest hourly trading volume in the past year.
The Turkish Lira fell 13%, reaching a new low of 42 per USD. Many Turkish citizens have turned to cryptocurrency as a hedge against the ongoing currency depreciation.
Alongside the financial turmoil, Turkey has restricted access to social media, including X (Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook. The opposition has called İmamoğlu’s arrest a “coup attempt”, as it happened just days before he was expected to be selected as a presidential candidate.
In response to the situation, international human rights groups have raised concerns over political suppression in Turkey. Crypto analysts predict that Turkish crypto trading volumes may continue rising as uncertainty grows.
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