The Turkish parliament has approved legislation to turn the Istanbul Financial Center (IFC) district into a global financial hub.
According to the Turkish Anadolu Agency, the Turkish sovereign wealth fund will establish a company to manage the IFC for the next 20 years.
The various Turkish ministries plan to launch a ‘one-stop shop’ system to handle requests from investors interested in working in the center.
Financial services exported by companies based in the IFC will be exempt from corporate taxes until 2031.
Moreover, all profits from center activities will be exempt from all types of taxes, in addition to exempting up to 80 percent of center workers’ wages from taxes.
The IFC is regarded as an integrated financial ecosystem that includes many financial institutions such as investment firms, portfolio management, as well as traditional and Islamic banking financial companies.
Late last year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that the IFC would improve Turkey’s global financial standing. He emphasized that the facility will also be a significant step forward in the field of Islamic banking.
According to reports, the IFC project was first announced in 2008, with its strategy and work plan going into effect on September 29, 2009. The project was divided into four sections and made use of cutting-edge smart city technologies as well as the most advanced and modern Internet of Things (IoT) services.
The new project is expected to generate more than 120,000 job opportunities, and it is estimated to attract more than 75,000 visitors per day.
The center is projected to grow by $250 billion in revenue. It will also generate, within 15 years of operation, an added value of more than $160 billion that will be sustainably injected into the Turkish economy.
