Erdogan: There was a problem in the economy, no… We are on our way

The Istanbul Financial Center (IFC) was inaugurated today.

The banking phase of the project, which is located in Ataşehir and whose construction began in 2014, was inaugurated today with a ceremony attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Minister of Finance Nureddin Nebati and Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate. Change Murat Kurum.

Nureddin Nebati, Minister of Finance and Finance, also spoke at the opening of the IFC, which has had great discussions on the relocation of the Central Bank to Istanbul and the relocation of public banks. Stating that the opposition is negotiating with the IMF in his speech, Erdogan said there is no problem in the economy.

‘WE WILL PROVIDE TAX ADVANTAGES’

Nebati said: “Starting in 2036, we anticipate that IFC will increase our country’s total exports of financial services nearly three times and that its total contribution to Gross Domestic Product will be approximately $130 billion over 15 years.”

Nebati also added that various discounts, exemptions and tax advantages will be provided to make the IFC competitive.

Speaking at the opening, President Erdoğan said: “With IFC, Turkey has shown the will and courage to say that I am here, in the field where it has been excluded for years. I hope that this center, which will grow rapidly under the locomotive of the financial sector of the Turkish economy, will be beneficial to our country.”

ERDOĞAN: THERE IS NO PROBLEM IN THE ECONOMY

In his speech, stating that the opposition is negotiating with the IMF, Erdogan said that there is no problem in the economy. Erdoğan said:

“There are those around the table of seven, one of them is in Davos. In Davos, Kahn is the head of the IMF, we are interviewing him. I told him, you are sending men from time to time and you are speaking on behalf of managing Turkey, do you collect your dues? It is up to me to rule Türkiye.

We had a debt of 23.5 billion dollars with the IMF. We made the payments to the IMF until 2013, we finished it, what happened after. The CHP spokesman and his partner, who was in charge of the hidden treasure at the time, sat in hotels behind closed doors and negotiated on behalf of the IMF. That he will not be able to run this business without the support of the IMF.

There was a problem in the economy, no… We continued our way very well. The MB’s foreign exchange reserve was 22.5 billion dollars. During my first ministry, we increased it to $135 billion. We broke off relations with the IMF in 2013, the center’s foreign exchange reserve has increased, we don’t need it now.

This nation does not forget that civil servants’ pensions are paid with IMF debts because the country’s treasury is full of debts. They were the SHP and CHP periods, they inflicted a lot of suffering on the nation. People will never forget how they ruined SSK in the past and how they robbed the country. This nation will not forget how the populist rhetoric of the 1990s led the country to collapse.”

IFC HISTORY

So why has the Istanbul Financial Center project been discussed so far?

Showing the 300,000 square meters of land in Ümraniye as the address, the government announced the Istanbul Financial Center (IFC) project in January 2008. The architectural design and project preparation process of IFC, whose strategy and action plan was published in the Official Gazette in October 2009, it was in charge of Emlak Konut GYO.

Although the first construction tender for IFC was held in November of the same year, the first excavation was carried out in 2014. The opening date of the project, which was announced for 2016 due to the delay in the tenders and the construction of the buildings to which banks and public institutions such as the Central Bank, BRSA and SPK will move, was postponed to 2018, then to 2020, and finally to 2023.

IMPRESSIVE ACCOUNT NEARLY $1 BILLION

Looking at the foreign currency base, it was seen that the project, which was expected to cost $2.58 billion 10 years ago, was completed at $3.35 billion at today’s exchange rates. It is claimed that the delay in construction and the rise in the prices of materials increase the cost of the project.

While the project to relocate Borsa İstanbul and the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey to Istanbul continues, the relevant units of Vakıfbank, Ziraat Bank and Halk Bank will start operating in the bank phase of IFC. The Istanbul Financial Center project includes 1.3 million square meters of offices, a 100,000-square-meter shopping center and a congress center for 2,100 people.