Economy, Currency and Banking

The monetary unit of Turkey is the Turkish lira (TL), which is divided into 100 kurus (625,219 TL equal U.S.$1; 2000 average). The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, founded in 1930, is the bank of issue. The country also has many state banks concerned with economic development, such as the Agriculture Bank of the Republic of Turkey, founded in 1863, and several commercial banks. Turkey’s principal stock exchange is in Istanbul.