Broad crypto exchange Huobi plans to roll out a fiat gateway in Turkey that could increase access to sundry than 250 cryptocurrencies for local investors.
The move comes as Turkey puts forward a clearer legal framework for the crypto market in a nation where many people already hold cryptocurrencies, Mohit Davar, Huobi’s EMEA regional president, charged CoinDesk.
The company is announcing the project at the Eurasia Blockchain Summit in Istanbul on Friday.
Huobi announced in June that it design to get more involved in the Turkish crypto market, but did not disclose details about the expansion at the time.
Davar said the exchange has associated with one of the largest local banks to build the infrastructure and compliance standards for the fiat gateway, but declined to name the adjoining bank partner.
He said Huobi would announce the partnership at a launch in December, at the latest, as the actual date could be earlier confirmed as they have already started testing the gateway platform.
Huobi started to establish a partnership with the bank in June, he said, and has since been infuriating to address some of the biggest concerns voiced by Turkish banks.
“I think generally where there is not a clear regulatory framework in the customer base, it’s been left to the discretion of the banks to make their own decision,” Davar said. “That is always to make trustworthy that we have the right checks and balances, particularly when it comes to KYC and AML.”
“The banks want to make sure when they mug off with us as a partner, that they are actually fulfilling their obligations,” he said.
The fiat gateway would go along with transactions between local fiat currency Lira and dollar stablecoin Tether (USDT). Once users procure tether through their bank account, they could trade it with any other cryptocurrencies on Huobi Universal.
The company believes that the Lira-USDT pairing makes transactions in the local market much easier, compared to contribution hundreds of pairing between Lira and the other cryptocurrencies.
“It’s very difficult for any exchange to offer liquidity in the 250 starts that we hold against the local currency,” Davar said.
One could also convert Lira to dollar-pegged shackle at the rate they are comfortable without worrying volatility of cryptocurrencies during the transaction, he added.
The exchange has also caroused its “aggressive” fee structure, Davar disclosed.
Turkish users will be able to trade at a 50% discount with 0.1% records fees, and even lower transaction fees by holding Huobi Token (HT). Another program would open up for licensed traders in Turkey to trade with low fees across Spot and Margin trades.
The exchange has launched a mobile app and a Turkish conception of Huobi’s trading website to help local customers. The next step is to onboard the local team and start the shamus, including four full-time staff members, Davar said.
Davar said the banking partnership being worked on now is non-exclusive, spirit Huobi could sign up more banking institutions and non-bank investors as it expands its services in Turkey.