By 
Colendi, a Turkish FinTech company, has gained regulatory approval from the Turkish Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA) to establish the nation’s inaugural digital deposit bank.
The official announcement was made on Monday (August 21), heralding a significant milestone for the company. ColendiBank, Turkey’s pioneering digital bank, intends to expand its platform to encompass 50 million customers on a regional scale, positioning itself as a prominent global player in the realm of financial technology innovation.
Colendi plans to capitalize on its artificial intelligence (AI) technology to roll out an array of services, all accessible via the digital deposit and service banking model.
CEO and Co-founder of Colendi, Bülent Tekmen, emphasized that the acquisition of London-based SETL has been pivotal in shaping the trajectory of this new digital banking endeavor. SETL is the principal technology partner for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s digital dollar project.
The company revealed that it secured $30 million in a Series A funding round in 2021, propelling its valuation from $120 million to $750 million.
Ian Hannam, the British Chairman of Colendi, conveyed his excitement about the journey ahead, stating, “Our next step is to expand into new markets. Turkey’s regulative environment is almost identical to the EU and MENA.” (EU: European Union, MENA: Middle East/North Africa).
Earlier this year, PYMNTS delved into Turkey’s digital banking landscape through an interview with Nezih Sipahioglu, the CEO of FinTech company Sipay. Sipay provides a unified API-based virtual point-of-sale (POS) solution, streamlining both online and offline payment processing for merchants.
Sipay also offers a white-label digital wallet solution, enabling retail brands to access services from multiple banks within a single app, covering aspects such as microcredit offers and credit card applications.
Sipahioglu noted that the demand for the digital wallet solution has surged in tandem with the burgeoning eCommerce market. Customers seek the convenience of an open-loop payment mechanism, facilitating transactions across various locations from a centralized mobile wallet.
Comments